Trouble
by Mikuxmew85
Summary: No matter what he did, everything seemed to be spiraling out of control. Before he knew it, he was in trouble. Extremely. What was he supposed to do now?
1. Problems

_Chapter 01_

 **Author's Note: So this is my first Undertale fanfiction as well as my first FriskxSans fanfiction. Unfortunately, I do not own Undertale or anything associated with it, all credit goes to Toby Fox and the amazing people he worked with. Obviously I'm not shipping them with her as a kid, that should go without saying, but you never know. I hope you all enjoy it and that will continue to read it as it goes on. So without further ado, the story.**

\--

It had been almost ten years since he had first seen the sun descending beyond the horizon. It had been almost ten years since he had seen the stars for the first time. Frisk had said she wanted to see the stars with him. Despite the nervousness he carried then, he followed. He had been worried that what he had conjured in his mind of the vision of "stars" wouldn't match the real thing. He has been right. Sitting at the edge of the cliff that overlooked Ebott City he has thought it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. However, that was then and this was now. Now, he knew he was in trouble. Tapping his phalanges against the weathered teak of the bar he knew so well, he waited for Grillby to bring out his order. Sitting at the bar, surrounded by dark oak booths that sported the carmine cushions, decorating the edges of the restaurant section used to give him a sense of comfort. Key words "used to". Nothing in the world gave him comfort and ease right now. The warm chestnut of the bar at the front made him anxious, the light cinnamon of the floors filled him to his marrow of worry. He exhaled, more of a sigh actually, for what was probably the hundredth time in five minutes.

'what's takin' grillbs so long?' He thought. If he was giving him some time to think, honestly, that was the last thing he wanted or needed right now. Being alone to his thoughts was a one way ticket to making him smash his skull against the bar in a vain attempt to knock himself out. Knowing him though, he'd probably wouldn't be able to get away from his problems even in his dreams. No, that would actually be the worst place to be. In his dreams, he couldn't push his problems aside and focus on something else. He'd be forced to face his troubles head on, and when he woke up they would just slam into him harder. For the past--he wanted to say three years--he had these troubles. Nagging at the back of his skull every day had become tiring. In order to, for lack of a better word, combat these troubles constantly penetrating every thought he had, he chose... distractions. It was no secret among his friends--and some other monsters--that he had become promiscuous in an attempt to distract himself along with the constant extra supply of ketchup Grillby now had to constantly order. He wouldn't exactly say that he was a "ketchup-holic", but he's never acted like this before in his life. He had even resorted to using mustard on some occasions, which I'd you had offered him the stuff in the underground, he would've laughed at you. More than worrying, it aggravated him. Before, he had been content in his lazy life, not even getting enough incentive to clean his room. Now it was becoming different, albeit not completely nor constant. Papyrus almost had a SOUL attack when he moved a sock from the place it had been sitting for almost the whole time they had been on the surface. He had even checked to see if he was sick. Adding one more number to his sigh count, it seemed to be the magic number for Grillby had come from the back and sat the fries down in front of him.

"thanks grillbs..." Sans trailed off. Taking the bottle of ketchup, he put some on his fries and took a deep drink of some more from the bottle.

A concerned crackle of the fire elemental in front of him made him look up. Grillby had never really been one for conversation, only talking when something was really urgent. It was a trait that had confused most humans once he opened his bar on the surface as well as aggravated some others. Sans couldn't really fault him for not talking, Grillbs had always been more of a listener anyway, settling for an emotional crackle in response.

"yeah, i'm fine..."

Grillby adjusted his glasses, not taking his gaze away from Sans. His glare could practically pierce holes into you from how intense it could be.

"... i said i'm fine."

Another glare.

"and i'm supposed to do what about it?"

This time, Grillby was the one to pause. This crackle was thoughtful. He took his rag and began to wipe at the ever clean bar. Call it a 'tick' if you would, perhaps a way to clear his mind. Many a time, Grillbs would end up wiping down the bar at least twenty times before he answered a puzzling question.

"exactly." However, this time it was only around six times he wiped down the bar before looking at Sans once more. It seemed like he came to the conclusion faster than he, or Sans had expected. Adjusting his glasses again, he watched as Grillby gave his version of a sigh, sounding like a campfire.

"can you just get me another bottle, campfire?" He asked. Without taking his eye off of Sans, he reached under the counter and handed Sans another bottle. This time it was a warning crackle that came from his friend.

"... i'm fine." Sans assured. "and i don't have a problem." Grillby had stopped wiping the glass that also seemed to never be clean enough for his tastes, or perhaps it was another tick. Either way, Sans was faced with another intense gaze.

"Mustard." Grillby said. Ya see? Never said more than what was necessary. Even though his voice was warm--no pun intended for once--and many humans liked it, never more than necessary.

"you didn't have any ketchup." Sans waved his hand dismissively, eating at the fries, hoping to at least put a dent in the heaping pile before they grew cold or he grew aggravated enough to leave. The former seemed more probable than the latter. It seemed that Grillby was done talking because he went back to shining the glass. This time it was a pointed crackle, and Sans knew that he had just proved Grillbs' point, of course, he'd never admit to that. Seconds turned into minutes, and before he knew it, about five minutes had passed with neither one of them talking--or crackling. Perhaps Grillby was waiting for him to finish his fries before he laid into him again. He hoped that Grillby was done with the lectures, at least for today. He gave longer lectures than Paps, which said a lot. Sans had fallen asleep at the mercy of his brother's lectures before, which only got a rise out of his younger brother and led him right into another lecture. When Grillby seemed like he had given Sans enough time to think, he started again. This time the sound that came from him was worry. However, Sans continued to eat his fries. He wasn't snubbing his friend, he was thinking.

"you really think i have a problem?"

An affirmative crackle.

"hmm." was Sans' only response, popping the last fry into his mouth. Without asking, another bottle of ketchup appeared in front of him. One would think Grillby would cut him off. After all, he had wracked up more than ten year's worth of money for his tab, but Grillby never seemed to mind.

"if i have a problem, you're not helping, bud." Sans prodded. If Grillby could give a convincing eye roll, Sans was sure he would have. Nevertheless not looking a gift horse in the mouth, he began to drink from the bottle as Grillbs went back to shining the glass which for anyone else could blind them by how reflective it was.

Ten bottles later, forty five minutes later, and four orders of fries later it couldn't be denied that Sans was drunk. Yes, that's right. Drunk. Leaning on the bar ever so slightly, another bottle was sat in front of him.

"y'know what i don't understand?" Sans' speech had become slightly slurred.

An inquisitive crackle.

"those creatures."

"Women." Grillby corrected.

" 'hat's whad i said."

Grillby conceded. There was no point in arguing. He handed his friend another bottle. The reason Grillby had never really cut Sans off, as many humans had asked, before was that it wasn't toxic. It was ketchup, for some reason, Sans got drunk off it. If it was one of his human patrons on the other hand, and they were drinking alcohol, they would have been cut off LONG ago.

Sans downed the bottle in almost three gulps.

"whatcha think the reason was?" Sans asked, wiping his hand down his face. Another bottle. Actually... three? Or was it triple vision already. He was always thankful monsters never got hangovers, or he would've long been dead... Uh... Re-dead?

A thoughtful crackle.

"Worried?"

"of course ya campfire..."

"Ten years."

"i know howta count."

Grillby didn't argue, or crackle on the contrary.

" 'fore ya say 'nythin' i did ask."

Grillby cracked a smirk.

"i know ya well enough t' know ya were gonna ask."

Sans asked himself why it mattered for the hundredth time. It was ten years ago after all, whatever the reason was it was probably long gone by now. That nagging feeling was the problem though, well another problem in addition to his MAIN problem. What if the reason wasn't gone? What if it was a bad reason to begin with? No matter what he had asked, he was always met with "Don't worry". That's one of the things that aggravated him most. Those dismissive answers. He hated them.

"y'know, i try t' have fun, that's apparently a crime.

"Fun?" Ignoring Grillby, Sans continued. "i try t' care, but i don't get met with anythin' but nothin'." Sans let his skull meet the bar again with another sigh. Grillby let out an concerned crackle and stopped shining his glass.

" 'm goin' home." Sans muttered under his breath and stood up. "put it on my tab, Grillbs." He said, staggering towards the exit. Thankfully, Grillby's wasn't crowded tonight, or he might've embarrassed himself. Just a few monsters here and there that knew of his problems. After what felt like the walk of a lifetime, Sans had made it to the door. Taking one hand out of his pocket, he reached for the doorknob only to have it turn and the door open in front of him. For a moment, he thought maybe he had used some magic in his drunken state, but when his white pin pricks of pupils looked up, he sighed again, instantly returning his hand to his pocket. Anger. Frustration. Headache. It was all packed into this small twenty year old girl in front of him.

"Sans!" Her voice was happy to see him. "I should've known you'd be here. I've been looking for you."

Not surprised or impressed, he tried to blink her into focus.

"Sans?"

". . . why?" That's not what he meant to say, but it was good enough.

"Huh?" She seemed shocked. Good. "Uh, all of us were going out for snacks over at Muffet's then maybe karaoke at... at Mettaton's new place..." By the end, her voice was trailing off.

"pass."

"Sans? ... Are you okay? What's wrong?" Her voice seemed genuinely concerned. Dammit... She reached out her hand to him and he moved away, not letting her touch him.

"don't worry." He said, it seemed to be the final nail in the coffin for her tonight, her hand falling back at her side. He felt accomplished in a sort of twisted way. As he left Grillby's, the last sound he heard from inside was Grillby's campfire sigh.

 **Alright! That's Chapter 01, I hope you liked it and will consider leaving a comment so I know how to improve and become a better writer. Chapter 02 will be up soon and I hope they progressively get longer as I go.**


	2. Addiction

**Alright, so as promised, here is chapter 02. I hope you all enjoyed chapter 01. I edited this chapter many times before I was at least sated enough to post it. I hope it's up to par and that you all enjoy. Anyway, here ya go!**

\--

As Sans trudged through the snow, a small smirk gripped into the edge of his cheek bone. He wanted to deny it, but he couldn't. It felt good to get that reaction out of her. Her blue eyes had went wide and then looked down at the ground. The hand that had attempted to reach out to him fell back next to her side. Despite him being drunk, the memory was crystal clear as was the satisfaction he got from her defeated look. Even he has to admit that his personality was twisted. The crunching of the snow beneath his feet was slowly bringing him back to reality.

It hadn't even been five minutes since he left Grillby's and he was already craving another bottle. Thankfully, he had another one as well as a half eaten bag of chips in the fridge at home. Maybe those bottles and the chips would be enough to get him through the night. If what the kid had said was true, then all of his friends would be gone until early in the morning. Karaoke with his friends could be interesting since it almost always ended up turning into a competition on who could best the other.

Stopping, he looked up at the night sky. If he had been a human, he would have been very cold and would have sought the heat of the house with haste. Of course, being a monster, it took him longer to get hot or cold. Normally, he would have taken the time to stay outside and take in the beauty of the stars. After all, it was a beautiful night outside. Crickets were chirping, snow was falling. On nights like this, skeletons like him, should have been sightseeing. However, in the state that she was currently in, he felt that he wouldn't be able to take in the true beauty of the nebula swirling in the sky.

His thoughts were silent, the only sound was the loud crunch of the snow. He supposed that he could think later. With every breath that he took, the puff of smoke grew larger and larger. He needed to get inside now. Finally, his house came into view. It reminded him of the house they had back in Snowdin minus the shed and the workshop that he had once had. They still had that ever present wreath hanging on the door. It was Papyrus' favorite and once he realized they had forgotten it many tears had been "caught" in his eyes.

Once Sans was inside, the first bite of chill that had seeped its way into his bones had begun to make an appearance. He zipped up his jacket tighter and went to the thermostat, checking the temperature; 70. Knowing that he would end up getting a lecture from Papyrus from touching the thermostat, but also not caring, he turned it up to 80. When Paps got home, he would thank him... Maybe. His feet took him staggering to the kitchen.

The house was silent, the ticking of the clock was the only sound in the room. Focusing on that so he wouldn't think, his mind was autopilot. Opening the fridge, a smile snuck up on his face. There they were, more bottles than he had thought. Papyrus must have gotten him some. He felt bad in a way, he asked Papyrus to get him some ketchup and while he knew what it did to Sans, he didn't really notice how much he consumed in a weekly--no daily basis. Of course, no matter what he did, he knew Papyrus would always believe in him. Maybe, he just had to believe in himself.

Shaking his skull, he grabbed two bottles from the fridge to start out with, and plopped himself down on the couch, hearing the familiar jingling of the coins set his mind at ease. Downing the bottles of ketchup seemed to be second nature, trying to keep his attention on the program that he was watching. Yet, despite his best efforts, he felt his mind wandering again. His troubles creeping to the forefront of his mind, probing there, wanting... No, DEMANDING to be heard.

An angry sigh, recently his primary emotion, escaped his mouth. He stood up, the coins in the couch even sounding angry clinking together.

"... dammit, this is ridiculous..." He cursed under his breath, wiping his hand down his face. Heading back to the fridge to grab more bottles. Sans looked at the familiar red bottles. If he wouldn't be able to push his troubles out of his mind, or even at the least to the back of his mind, then he would just drown it out. That seemed to be logical, right?

Hours had passed, songs with lyrics filled with emotions he hadn't felt in a long time--other than with Paps--played in the background; faceless actors glided across the screen in an attempt to draw one into the world they were trying to portray. It wasn't working. In fact, it was having the exact opposite effect. While the faceless man was laughing and smiling, he was only getting angrier by the passing second. How could he achieve happiness so quick? Was that possible and he was just becoming pessimistic?

One would think that since they got their happy ending, he would forever be joyful, but that wasn't realistic. Every scene he was just getting angrier and feeling more defeated by his own emotions. The woman on the screen seemed to glide across the screen in a wistful manner. Her hands were dainty and her smile was bright even as she hugged the man, glad to see her. Was it just him that was unhappy? He didn't understand why.

"lies." He said aloud to no one but himself. Why pretend? He knew he was lying. He knew why. He knew his troubles were making him this way.

Bottles of ketchup, next to a smaller pile of mustard littered the floor around the couch and the small side table. It was even a mess to him which said something, but he had no inspiration to clean it up nor the desire. This was getting bad if he wasn't even starting to taste the condiments. One of the things he was worried about was that he was going to end up being immune to the taste, and drink up until even a monster body couldn't handle it. Pathetic, wasn't it? That his only constant worry was going to be about his habits.

Another one finished, he tossed the bottle somewhere in the room not even caring where it landed anymore. His vision had been double, then triple, and now it was bordering on quadruple. No matter how much he blinked, the four images wouldn't come into focus. He snickered, a deep rumble bubbling in his sternum and traveling its way up to his trachea. He didn't even know what he found funny, but nevertheless, he tilted his head back. His mouth opened and that deep rumble spilled out into a laugh and soon he found himself laughing at nothing in the almost complete silence of his own home.

It just kept coming, the deep laughter. It occasionally decreased into a snicker, but then before it could any more, it escalated into that laugh once more. If his bones could feel minute pain like a human's body could, he was sure that his ribs would've been hurting. With great effort, he lifted his skull back up from the back of the couch and stared at the TV. He stood up, or his current version of standing up, and staggered to the kitchen. When he checked the fridge, he had only four bottles. He chuckled, another deep grumble began to stir in his sternum. They'd be gone before Papyrus got home.

True to his word, the four bottles; two of each condiment found their way on the floor within a matter of minutes. His sight graduated into a whole new kaleidoscope of colors and shapes. Another laughed bubbled from his mouth. Despite his addiction, there were worse things he could be addicted to. After all, these WERE only condiments, despite the effects it had on him.

"yer s' pathetic." He berated himself again, shaking his head. The whole word spun, but not in a bad way. It wouldn't be a bad way until the morning, afternoon, evening, whenever he felt like waking up. He didn't want to think about that right now though.

His abdomen rumbled. The stage of the munchies had started. From the kitchen he grabbed another bag of chips and dug into those.

"abs'lut'y pathetic." He muttered again, putting some chips into his mouth. When he was done, that bag ended up where? You guessed it. On the floor with the rest of the remains of his most recent escapade. Since he had depleted all the bottles and chips he had in the house, he figured it was a good time to call it a night.

Sans stood, staggering towards the stairs and gripping onto the banister of the stairs tightly, having to try a couple times since his phalanges were grabbing some mirages conjured by his drunken state. His foot had just touched the first step in his trek to the top when the phone rang. Using the wall for support, he made it to the phone on the wall. He deliberated for a few moments on whether to answer it. It could be trouble, but it could also be Papyrus checking in on him. Despite what Paps said, Sans knew the truth. He was the good brother, Sans was the bad--of if he was being truthful to himself--the disgrace.

The voice on the other end of the phone surprised him, and a devious smile came to his mouth. He leaned against the wall and folded his arm over the other. It was a human woman, one that he had met with once or twice. Though... at the current moment he couldn't remember her name. In his defense however, he was having problems remembering where his brother had even went to that night.

"no, i don't mind." He answered her.

"Are you sure?" The voice was courteous, but was obvious that she didn't need convincing.

" o' course. have i e'er lied to ya?" The question was rhetorical and they both knew it, but neither of them said anything to the contrary.

"Alright, Sansy. I'll see you soon."

Sans hung up after her and stayed leaning against the wall. His eyes were half lidded by the time the knock came at the door. When he opened it, the woman smiled brightly at him, a red color painting her lips while a pink dusted her nose and cheeks from the cold. He never understood how humans could deal with the winter if their bodies could be so easily chilled, despite the warm clothes they wore.

"Are you going to invite me in or just stare?" She had asked. Sans stepped out of her way and let the woman in.

"can't i do both?" He asked, watching as she kicked the door closed behind her, never taking her eyes off Sans. Without saying anything else, Sans watched as her warm coat fell to the floor behind her. She crossed the distance between them, a smile never leaving her painted lips.

Yes, for now at least, his troubles would disappear.

 **So chapters may come a little slower now since I had these two pre-written. However, I won't be taking months in between to write them, because I know how aggravating that can be, especially if you like the story. I hope you will consider leaving a comment/review or whatever. It would mean so much to me. Have a great day/night!**


	3. Regret

The sunlight beamed through the panes of his window and onto his lidded sockets. His eyes opened and suddenly squinted from the assault on them. It was a beautiful day outside. Birds were singing, flowers were blooming. Despite the beauty visible from the window into the outside world, inside was anything but. He glanced out of the corners of his sockets and sighed. Clicking his tongue, he shook what was left of the post awakening daze from his head. What he saw when he looked back hadn't changed. The sunlight cast shadows in the room, over him and the form next to him making him face the cruelty and reality of his mistake. He took the heels of his hands and dug them into his sockets as if trying to wipe away what he saw.

The form next to him was still there; a woman. Naked. Sleeping. Vague memories flooded into his mind of the previous night. He had been about ready to go to bed... right? Then the phone had rang. His mind couldn't form the words in his head of what had been said, but she had barely walked in the door before they were on each other. He had hoped that it hadn't escalated as far as his mind thought it did, but scanning around the room there was all the evidence pointing to what he didn't want to face.

A dress had been thrown on the floor, a shirt on the floor, a shredded pair of lacy underwear on the doorknob with a just as tattered bra not too far away. To be truthful, he couldn't believe he was feeling the guilt in the pit of his... stomach. He had done this many times before, but maybe what bothered him most wasn't that he didn't really remember what had happened between them, but that he didn't remember her name.

Fran...? Felicia?

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember it. All he remembered was that it started with an F. Perhaps another thing that made him sick was that she was still there. Usually during his night escapades, one would leave right after or before one woke up. He hadn't had to face someone sleeping next to him before, well a woman. He had had Paps and Frisk sleep by him when they were kids and sometimes Paps even still did it.

Frisk.

Instantly, his mood turned sour, remembering the child that had saved them and who was now a young woman. Accompanied with remembering her name and thinking of her at all beckoned the feeling of nausea. He swallowed, the last thing Sans wanted to do was vomit. With another glance at Fran or Felicia, he stood up. Scratching the back of his ivory skull, he looked around for some clothes. Donning his usual attire, he froze in place when the human woman exhaled and moved in her sleep. Sans only let an exhale leave his body when Fran or Felicia had nestled back into bed.

Sans went over and opened his one night stand's drawer and hastily moved the many items around before he took out a pad of sticky notes and a pen. Papyrus had told him he needed another night stand, but Sans had said that he kept the one for the sake of a pun; Papyrus didn't understand. Even to this day, he didn't understand the joke and when he had tried to ask Grillby, the flame elemental had almost dropped his glass. Similar reactions had come from around their circle of friends. His sockets turned to the paper and he began to write;

'hope you enjoyed yourself. get home safe.

\- sans'

Reading the note over a couple of times, he decided it was satisfactory enough to use. He turned around and gathered her clothing up, one article at a time. He picked up the underwear between two phalanges, staring at had once been. The bra was just in bad of shape and when he placed the pile of clothes on the stand and put the note on them, he looked at the woman again. He didn't even remember how the lace of her underwear had gotten into that state, but from the look of bliss that was on Fran or Felicia's face, he could only assume that she had liked it. It made his ego swell a little. Sans knew he wasn't bad at what he did, but, seeing the look on their faces always did it.

Quickly, Sans retreated. He disappeared into the void between this world and another in a vapor of blue smoke, landing outside. He wiped his hand down his face and sighed, feeling a head splitter coming on. He knew what could cure a headache; fries and a burger. Shoving his hands back in the pockets of his jacket, he trudged down the street to his friend's establishment. Before someone even got to the door, the sounds of laughter and the smell of food was present. Grillby hardly ever opened the windows, he didn't want the wind to mess up his flame. Either way, the walls seemed to seep the smell and jovial mood. He hoped that it would rub off on him because right how, he needed it.

Inside, the clamor of every day life only intensified. The booths were filled and as he passed by, some monsters waved.

"Yo! Sans, what's up man?" A monster said and clasped their hands together and gave a hug and a pat on the back.

"not much, just getting something to eat." He didn't want to delve into his personal life with someone that wasn't Grillby.

Sans thought that he could just make small talk with his acquaintance and be alright, the fact that his body knew he was about to get food was already starting to alleviate his headache. Nothing stayed so simple for him,

"So how's Frisk?" He asked and the feeling of nausea returned. Why, of all topics, did this one have to come up? Sans tried to play it off and simply shrugged, his hands taking their signature place in his pockets with a small chuckle.

"dunno." Sans said and smirked, seeing his friend look at him in confusion. He tried to have a passive glare of not wanting to answer any questions, but he could rival Papyrus on the oblivious trait.

"You don't know?" The monster said and adjusted himself in the booth before continuing his thought. "You and her were attached at the hip, and you don't know?"

Sans' eye socket twitched but the smile still remained on his face. It was becoming more strained with every look that the two monsters shared.

"not my day to watch the kid."

"But Sans, you-"

"talk to ya later. i'm hungry."

Ejecting himself from the conversation elicited a sigh of relief. All he had wanted was to eat in peace and get rid of his headache. Now he was feeling nauseous and his headache was getting stronger. Fan. Fucking. Tastic. He took a seat at his usual stool and rubbed his temples with his fingers. Before he could even open his mouth to order, a glass was put in front of him. When he looked up, his best friend was shining his glass per usual.

He was hoping a good ol' bottle of Heinz would've been put in front of him, but the glass was filled with soda. Ebott Dew from the smell of it. He was a fan of it. Multiple bottles of it-great and small-littered his room mingled with the ketchup bottles. He looked from the Dew to his best friend who didn't seem to see anything wrong.

"you think this is funny?" Grillby didn't answer him. He just grabbed another glass to dry. "the fuck is this?"

Grillby didn't look at Sans, but spoke anyway, a feat in itself.

"...soda." He said. Sans never really got violent at Grillbs or yelled at him, but from the morning he was having and the sour mood he had been put in by the monster in the booth, he wasn't acting like his normal self.

"you know what the hell i mean, campfire." Sans said and put his face in his hands.

"You don't need it."

"the hell would you know, huh?"

"..." Grillby fell into silence again. Sans sighed and shook his head which rubbed his hands against his face. He felt bad and was about to apologize when Sans heard Grillby continue. Instead of cutting off the conversation, Grillbs must've just been gathering his thoughts. "What did you do?"

"i didn't do anything."

"... Liar."

"what makes you think i did something?"

"You're not acting like yourself."

Sans cringed slightly, his harsh accusations settling into his marrow. This was absolutely ridiculous. He was being absolutely ridiculous.

"so what? can't a guy have an off day?"

A few moments passed between them and was slightly elated that Grillby didn't fire back right away and internally laughed at his pun. Fire... heh. That was a good one. He'd have to share that with-... Nobody. Share it with nobody.

"What. Did. You. Do?"

Sighing in defeat, Sans looked up at Grillby and let his perpetual smile turn into a perpetual frown.

"i... spent the night with someone." When Grillby didn't respond, he figured that was a cue to keep going. "and woke up next to her."

Grillby almost dropped his glass. He cleared his throat and adjusted his glasses trying to get over the initial shock. While he hadn't approved of Sans' hobbies, he knew Sans had the one rule; don't wake up next to the woman. Feelings could develop, and well... Sans didn't need that right now. He disappeared and a couple minutes later reappeared with some food. He could tell Sans was about to lose it.

"Who was it?" He asked, hoping that they could front this off before the woman started to develop unnecessary feelings.

"i dunno. fran... felicia... freesia. it was something like that." Sans said and sighed again, taking a sip of the soda that had remained untouched. "now all i feel is regret."

While Grillby was happy to see Sans growing a conscious for all the ways he'd been acting, he didn't appreciate the sordid mood it put his friend in.

"I see. I will see what I can do if anything develops." Grillby promised.

While Sans continued to pluck at the fries and burger, he noticed Grillby would occasionally take glances at him.

"my turn. what's on your mind?" Sans asked and Grillby returned with a dismissive crackle. "so it's gonna be like that huh?" He popped another fry into his mouth and watched his friend, hoping the staring would make him crack or show some kind of weakness. He should've known better. This was Grillby after all. "so it is."

They sat in silence quietly enjoying each other's company. The further into the meal Sans got, the more his headache was disappearing as was the sentimental mood he had been in minutes prior. Occasionally, Grillbs would put another soda down in front of him. It was only when he was completely finished with both food and drink did Sans speak again.

"thanks for the food. i'm gonna head out. paps needs me to get ingredients for tonight's dinner." Sans smiled fondly when Grillby picked up the glass and plate and returned to the back room.

Outside, the wind was gently blowing, only barely disrupting the fabric of his shorts. It was cool outside and comfortable. He exhaled and closed his eyes, letting the wind glide against his bones. He still couldn't believe that he had went off like that. The monster from the booth had no doubt been the cause; randomly asking about "her" like that.

"Just leave me alone! I'm not your girlfriend, so just stay away from me! I don't even want to be your friend! I hate you!"

The words threw themselves against the walls of Sans' cranium and the moment of peace was shattered. The shadows that he had once found endearing and cheerful now seemed ominous and dark. A ringing could be heard from his pocket which gave him a few moments to realize what it was. When two and two clicked together, he grabbed his phone and answered.

"SANS! IT'S A DISASTER! A COMPLETE AND TERRIBLE DISASTER!"

"paps, what-"

"IT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD EVER HAPPEN, EVER!"

"tell me wh-"

"I DON'T KNOW HOW I'LL EVER FEEL HAPPY AGAIN!"

"paps!" Sans said louder, but didn't yell. He didn't want his little brother to think that he was mad at him. He would've been worried, but Paps had a habit of over exaggerating... pretty much everything. "calm down and tell me what it is."

"IT'S TERRIBLE! I WENT TO GO AND MAKE DINNER AND I OPENED THE CABINET AND GUESS WHAT I FOUND?"

"a box of pasta?"

"YES, BUT WHAT ABOUT THE BOX?"

"it-"

"YES BROTHER! IT WAS EMPTY! IT'S TERRIBLE!"

Sans smiled genuinely and shook his head. His brother was such a big bag of drama sometimes. No wonder he had gotten a part in one of Mettaton's plays a few years ago. Papyrus had said that he had practiced hard for it, but Sans knew he was just acting like himself.

"paps, i tell ya what. i'll go into town and get you some more. okay?"

"MORE? FROM THE STORE! YES! THAT'S RIGHT! YOU ARE SO SMART BROTHER! THANK YOU SANS! I SHALL PREPARE MANY MORE THINGS FOR DINNER TONIGHT!"

Sans smiled and heard the 'beep' of the call ending. He laughed gently and shoved his hands and his phone into his pockets. He sighed, trying to lighten his mood again. Opening his sockets, he headed down the road towards the central part of town where the grocery stores were all... two of them.

He grabbed a basket inside the door when they swooshed open in front of him. With how much pasta he bought from here, the stores had to put in extra orders to get the pasta. He followed the numbers with his eyes even though he knew the store like the back of his hand:

Aisle 1: Produce

Aisle 2: Pet supplies

Aisle 3: Stationary

Aisle 4: Frozen foods

Aisle 5: Drinks

Aisle 6: Medicine

Aisle 7: Dairy

Aisle 8: Pasta and canned goods

He turned down aisle 8 and stopped suddenly. Sans wanted to call Sans and tell him that the store was out of pasta, but no doubt his brother would cry for hours afterwards saying he felt bad that he hadn't been able to cook for him. He kept his eyes on the boxes of pasta and jars of sauce. Might as well get some sauce too while he was here.

"Sans. Hey." The small voice had come from behind him. He didn't look at the voice and tried his hardest not to let the words register in his head. When he grabbed the items, he had turned around to leave the aisle, but she had stepped in front of his sight; not fully, but enough to where he got to see her. Her brown hair was brushed and she was wearing a sundress. He hated it. Hated her hair. Hated her eyes. Just hated every bit of her.

"what?"

"Um... Well... Whatcha getting?" She asked, peeking over into his basket. It wasn't quantum physics, the ingredients were the same every time. He moved the basket out of her sight a bit. The gesture seemed to go through since she leaned back to her full height. All 5 foot and 1 inch of her.

"pasta. sauce."

"O-Oh. You uh... What-"

"spaghetti."

There was a stand still between the two of them. Part of him had wanted to apologize when her face fell, but it was quickly washed away when he saw something he only knew was a matter of time. A large hand wrapped around her waist. Sans looked, almost bored at what he had seen: a tall human was standing next to her. His hair was blond and his eyes were blue as well.

"Oh... Was I interrupting something?" The human asked, having not taken his eyes off of Sans, the skeleton just letting out a short bitter laugh.

"no."

"Jason, this is-"

"no one important." Sans said and started to walk past them, but between the two of them, the small aisle was blocked off. He didn't want to hear anymore. He didn't want to see anymore.

"I've heard a lot about you Sans." Jason said and wrapped his arm tighter around her, happiness in his blue eyes. He hated that happiness. Looking over the two of them, he let out another bitter laugh.

"i should've known this was how it was going to end up." Sans said, looking at Jason but was talking to her.

"What do you-"

Ignoring Jason's words, Sans sat the basket down with its ingredients on the ground and turned around. He didn't want to be here. There was another store. Smaller. Farther away. He could just go up there and get it there. Without saying anything, he walked away from them and went outside. His legs took him straight to the other store.

"I hate you! I don't even want to be your friend!" That voice continued to taunt him over and over.

"good thing the feeling's mutual then, huh kid?" Sans answered the voice in his head and gathered the ingredients from the other store. He gave a fake smile to the cashier; Fall. He thought "Autumn" would've been better, but it wasn't his name. He looked at the slip of paper she had handed him. Name and phone number. "might as well use this sometime soon."

His shoes crunched against the fallen leaves. The crisp air was helping to clear his cranium from the bullshit that was in there. He actually loved it when the weather was like this. He could go ahead and enjoy it. Maybe later he would go out for a walk, probably before he called Fall. Stupid name. Had her parents been drunk? When Sans went inside the house and gave his brother the ingredients and filled the fridge with Ebott Dew, Ketchup, and other ingredients. Of course, he was met with another curveball.

"OH! SANS! I'M GLAD YOU BOUGHT SO MUCH! I INVITED ALL OUR FRIENDS TO HAVE DINNER WITH US TONIGHT! IT'S BEEN A FEW WEEKS SINCE WE ALL HUNG OUT BECAUSE WE'VE BEEN SO BUSY! IT'S A GOOD IDEA, RIGHT?"

"yeah... a good idea paps. thanks." Sans said, looking at his oblivious brother. He didn't want to think about that now. All he had to do was get through this night. For now, Papyrus said he wanted to play a game with him and beat him again.

"WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A LOT OF FUN!"

"yeah paps, we are."


	4. Betrayal

_Author's Note: So apparently, I had forgotten this chapter on . Oops. Well, this has actually been written for a while and I'm sorry to the people that are reading it that I'm just getting it to you now. I hope you like it!_

* * *

All day, Papyrus had been sending him every which way to get stuff for the party tonight. Chips, dip, streamers, punch, etc. Sans hadn't asked why he didn't tell him to get all this at one time, but then again he didn't really care. His primary focus was keeping his brother happy. Other things had mattered to him at one time, but no more. It wasn't important anymore. She wasn't important anymore.

Like an old movie, his memories replayed at the grocery store. She had been standing there with that tall, blond human. Perfect from human standards. Tall, muscular, tan, all the things he wasn't or couldn't be. Another bitter smile formed on his face. He didn't care anymore, it was funny to pretend that he did. Yet, with every movement of his hand snaking around her waist in his memory, he found himself getting angrier. Now, he didn't know why.

 _ _"I hate you!"__

He hasn't lied when he said that the feeling was mutual. He hated everything about her; her smile, her laugh, her clothes, her hair, face, clothes. He hated it all. Hated her personality and how she had reached out her hand to try and touch him. Without realizing it, he was scanning his bones for a burn.

Sighing, he adjusted the bags that were in his hands for what was probably the fifth time. It didn't matter what he thought or what she did. That was made abundantly clear. All he felt was anxiety and irritation that Papyrus had invited their friends to the house.

"I NOTICED YOU HAVE BEEN SAD LATELY, SANS, SO I BROUGHT EVERYONE TOGETHER TO MAKE YOU HAPPY!"

The innocence in Papyrus' eyes made his agitation dwindle down, like sand through fingers. His brother had good intentions, he always had. The younger skeleton didn't have a mean bone in his body. He was straight on good, even into his marrow.

A rip brought him from his thoughts and everything he had been holding in his bags had fallen from the bags; the strain having been too much for the flimsy plastic. He closed his sockets, looked up at the sky, and sighed. With hope, every sigh would expel some anger from his body at the day he was having.

When they were pooled at the end of the hill, he decided to walk down to gather it. Faced with everything he had bought, he was surprised the bags had lasted this long. He had bought more than he thought that he did. Kneeling down, he picked up as much as he could, stuffing some into his pockets to make sure he had to make as little trips as possible. He could always teleport back and forth, but he didn't feel like using that much magic right now.

Footsteps got closer, breaking into a run to make haste in his direction. He stopped instantly, the wound up streamers just barely in his pocket.  
"what do you want?" He asked when the footsteps had stopped right behind him.

"I SAW ALL THIS FALL AND BEING THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AND AWESOME BROTHER THAT I AM, I CAME TO HELP!"

That... hadn't been the voice he was expecting. Not at all.  
"you're right paps," Sans began hoping to distract from the fact that he had been plain out rude to his brother. "could you help me?"

"OF COURSE! I AM THE GREAT PAPYRUS AND BEST BROTHER! IT SAYS SO ON THE SHIRT YOU GOT ME!"

True to his word, Papyrus began gathering the rest of the fallen items. Between the two of them, they had only made one trip. He put everything down on the counters and brushed off some crushed flowers and grass. Sans stopped when he heard his brother gasp.

"BROTHER! LOOK AT THAT!"

"the flowers?"

"THEY'RE SAD!"

"sad...?" Sans looked at the flowers. Indeed, they did look sad. Then again, that was probably because they were dead.

"YES! CAN'T YOU SEE?! THEY'RE SAD BECAUSE THEY WERE CRUSHED!"

"well... i'd be sad too." Sans said and smiled gently at his brother who gathered them up one by one.

"WE MUST GIVE THEM A PROPER BURIAL!"

This wasn't anything new. He walked outside with Paps and dug a small hole with his fingers, all the while Paps looked with sadness and tears gathering in his sockets. He made sure that the hole was big enough to fit all six flowers.

"there ya go, paps. go ahead and put them to rest."

"I AM SORRY THAT MY SPAGHETTI SAUCE AND MY CHIP SAUCE CRUSHED YOU!"

"that's called 'salsa', paps."

"NOT NOW BROTHER, CAN'T YOU SEE I'M IN MOURNING!"

"you're right. how rude of me."

"I'M GLAD YOU UNDERSTAND."

A few more words of regret and sadness and the flowers were laid in their makeshift grave next to a plethora of broken acorns and torn leaves they had buried a few days prior. Sans had tried to explain that it was fall and things like this were bound to happen, but he didn't listen. They had spent hours planting all of them, and had gotten lectured when Paps had found him raking the yard.

"are you ready to go back inside?"

"YES..." They had not so much as made it back inside when Papyrus spoke again. "DO YOU THINK THEY'LL FORGIVE ME?"

"i'm sure they're in flower heaven having a good time and that they're not mad at you."

"ARE YOU SURE?"

"of course, paps."

With a great sigh, and a somewhat hung skull, Papyrus went back into the kitchen. Of course, Sans followed. He patted his brother on the back gently.

"they wouldn't want you to be sad, paps. they'd want us to continue to celebrate the party that you were going to have."

That seemed to be all that he needed to hear, because Papyrus began moving quickly in the natural habitat that was the kitchen, getting everything that he needed. Although he had tried to help, Paps had fronted him off saying that he didn't want Sans to mess anything up. So, he was assigned the role of "taste tester".

Surpringly, he had only wanted to puke from the taste a couple of times before the pasta had graduated into something that was edible, and shockingly, had grown into something that was good; on an amateur level anyway.

"I HAVE NEWS."

"okay?"

"I AM GOING TO MAKE THAT THING THAT UNDYNE TOLD ME TO NEVER TRY."

"garlic bread?"

"YES! IT SOUNDS SO EXOTIC DOESN'T IT?"

"i'm sure it is."

"WHY WOULD UNDYNE TELL ME NOT TO MAKE IT! I AM MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS!"

Now in addition to taste tester, Sans was doubling as supervisor. Not wanting to hinder his brother's emotions since he had just had a flower funeral, he lied and said that he wanted to learn from Master Chef Papyrus. Thankfully, that would give him a good view just in case the oven caught on fire... again.

It was a little crispy, bordering on burnt. Although, to his shock, it wasn't completely inedible. While Papyrus continued to make small things he didn't need supervision for, Sans hung up the small streamers and decorations.

"I'M STILL SAD YOU DIDN'T GET IT."

"we can't play piñata in the house, paps."

"WHY?"

"last time we did that, i had to fix the wall and get a new tv."

"THEY SHOULDN'T HAVE JUMPED IN MY WAY."

Sans chuckled and one by one, the blue and orange streamers decorated the house. Blue wasn't a Halloween color, but Papyrus had specifically said he wanted blue. Who was he to argue?

"almost done, paps."

"OUR FRIENDS SHOULD BE GETTING HERE SOON! I TOLD THEM TO BE HERE AT 8."

"it just turned 8:01."

Papyrus gasped just as the doorbell rang. He dashed to the door and opened it, seeing Mettaton standing there, brandishing his now perfect and complete form.

"YOU'RE LATE!"

"CORRECTION DARLING!" Mettaton said, flipping his metallic hair. "FASHIONABLY LATE!"

"NO MATTER HOW LATE YOU ARE, YOU CAN'T BEAT ME IN FASHION! I AM A FASHIONISTA!"

"paps, fashionistas are women." Sans corrected. "but, you can be whatever you want to be."

"THEN I CHOOSE TO BE A FASHIONISTA!"

"NOW THAT THAT'S SETTLED," Mettaton came in and put the burritos that he had made on the table. "I BROUGHT YOUR FAVORITE BURRITOS!"

"YES! WELL DONE!"

Sans peeked outside and saw Napstablook still standing outside, with a plate balancing on his head.  
"you coming in?"

"... oh. sorry... i didn't want to intrude." Napstablook apologized. Sans made a mental note that his apology count was at 1.

After Napstablook came in, before Papyrus could close the door, Undyne and Alphys came inside the house with a cake.

"I AM GLAD YOU'RE HERE!" Papyrus said.

"Of course! I'm always where there's good food."

"SO OF COURSE YOU WOULD COME GO MASTER CHEF PAPYEUS' HOUSE! IT ONLY MAKES SENSE! NYEH HEH HEH!"

Sans had gotten done with the streamers and was putting up the spider web and spider decorations. Truth be told, he had forgotten that today was Halloween. It was their favorite holiday, so he didn't protest when he was requested to go get the decorations.

"Dearie, I find these decorations offensive." A small voice chimed from the doorway and Muffet came in with all six of her arms full of cakes, pastries, and other cavity inducing treats.

"WHAT? WHY?"

"If you wanted spider decorations, all you had to do was ask, hehe. My friends would have been happy to oblige."

"I DIDN'T EVEN THINK OF THAT! NEXT YEAR!" Papyrus promised and helped Muffet put down the desserts.

Sans was informed that Toriel and Asgore wouldn't be coming considering that they had went out of town on a fourth honeymoon. It was alright, they needed time for themselves. He was about to go check on the oven for the additional garlic bread Papyrus was cooking before the doorbell rang.

"grillbs!" Sans smiled and welcomed his best friend in wholeheartedly. The fire elemental was excited and had brought a plethora of burgers and fries. Just behind Grillby was Jason with an arm snaked around her.

"Hey, Sans." She had begun. "We-"

 _ _Slam__.

Sans shut the door in their face and turned around, seeing Grillby's disapproving glare. Papyrus came to the door and looked at Sans.

"I HEARD FRISK'S VOICE! WHAT HAPPENED?"

Ignoring Grillby's glare, Sans shrugged.  
"i think the door is broken. just slammed shut by itself."

"BROKEN?" Papyrus exclaimed and opened up the door and stared at a confused Jason and a slightly saddened Frisk. "THE DOOR'S BROKEN!"

"Oh, that explains it." Jason said.

"I AM GLAD YOU BROUGHT YOUR MAN FRIEND, FRISK!"

Anger. Betrayal. Nausea.

The two entered, and Sans made a point to move as far away from them as possible without drawing suspicions.  
"paps, mind if i invite someone?" He asked.

"YES! OF COURSE!"

Sans walked to the phone and dialed the number, a smirk on his face. This would be perfect.


	5. Retaliation

_Author's Note: This chapter took a long time to get out for various reasons. I was in college this passed semester (obviously) and my mom had to have brain surgery and was diagnosed with brain cancer. So between running errands and going with her to radiation on top of finals, by the time I got home, I was spent. So as much as I wanted to write, I didn't feel like it would be fair to write something as tired as I have been. So those of you that are still here from the beginning, thank you for being patient. To those of you who are here from just arriving, please be patient with me from here on out since at my household, we've got a rocky road ahead of us right now._

* * *

Sans couldn't hide the slightly twisted smile on his face when he dug the paper out of his pocket. Glancing at it again, he felt the involuntary scrunching of the face before dialing the number on his cellphone. He didn't think that he would be able to get used to that name no matter how many times he had read it or heard it. The word in itself was strange, but to make it into a name. What had those parents been __thinking__? Had they been high? The white pinpricks of Sans' pupils lolled around in his sockets, focusing on the streamers up above. The ringing continued and he was starting to wonder if he had dialed the number right. He took the phone away from his face and read the numbers to himself when the screen lit up and compared them with the crumpled paper still between his phalanges. They were right. Figured. The __one__ thing that he had actually had been able to plan, albeit hastily, wasn't going to come to fruition. Sighing, he had just been about to hang up when he heard a voice on the other end of the line,

"H-Hello?" The voice sounded out of breath, but it was trying to be hidden.

"hey. it's me."

"O-Oh. I wasn't trying to ignore you, I promise. I was in the shower and-"

"my brother and me are having a halloween party at my house. wanna come?" Sans figured he might as well cut her off before she decided to go off on a tangent that he'd never be able to find a break in, in order to ask her this question.

"Me?"

"you're the one i'm talking too, aren't ya?"

"Yes, of course!"

"my house is just at the edge of town, you really can't miss it."

"Okay! I'll be there soon!"

"see ya."

When Sans got off the phone, he glanced over and saw that Jason and the kid were talking by the table with the snacks and she had giggled at whatever the human had said. Disgusting. He walked towards the couch and was about to plop on it right next to Mettaton who was in the middle of trying to convince Napstablook to try playing a match of the fighting game they were playing against Muffet. She had the highest record of winning streaks amongst them. Of course, the fact that she had six arms probably had something to do with it considering she could press buttons and combos faster than someone with two hands could. However, before he could do so, he heard Grillby and Papyrus in the kitchen. From Papyrus' tone, he seemed to be getting either upset or really excited.

"I TOLD YOU A HUNDRED TIMES GRILLBY, I AM KEEPING AN EXCELLENT SOCKET ON THE EXOTIC BREAD!"

"I see that Papyrus, however, I'm worried that you may get distracted by all the festivities and forget to take out the garlic bread when necessary. So I merely suggested that I help you, there's no reason to get upset."

Eyes from monsters and humans alike turned to the kitchen and even all sound in the game had stopped. Papyrus was a sensitive soul and it was very easy for him to take even small gestures of kindness personally, especially when it came to cooking. It was the one hobby that Papyrus had and he was extremely defensive about it. Sans knew that Grillby was coming from a good place, but even still he had to be quick about running interference or else this could get ugly.

"ARE YOU DOUBTING ME!? I AM MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS!"

"I know that b-"

"THERE IS NOTHING TO SAY GRILLBY! YOU HAVE NEVER BELIEVED IN ME!"

"Papyrus, don't be like that. You know that's not true."

"IT IS! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM OFFENDED!"

Just as Sans had arrived in the kitchen and was about to comfort his brother while at the same time trying to reason with him so that they could come to a consensus. He had become somewhat of a master at the sport between Team Papyrus and Team Grillby through the years both above and underground. Yet, by the time he had gotten to his destination, a new player was on the field. Blue flashed slightly in his socket, quickly illuminating the kitchen which only Grillby seemed to notice and caused him to jerk his head up, his eyes a desperate attempt to calm his friend down.

"Paps, you know that Grillbs didn't mean it like that." __She__ said, hugging his brother and patting his bony back. Papyrus almost looked on the verge of tears and he could hear the footsteps of the other Monsters and the other Human coming to see if the commotion had finally settled down or not.

"YES, FRISK, GRILLBY CANNOT TRUST ME WITH THE EXOTIC BREAD!"

"Oh c'mon Paps. You know that Grillby has always been supportive of you in everything that you do."

"W-WELL... YES. THAT'S TRUE."

"I-" __She__ had begun again, but Sans quickly went to his brother's side, placing his arms between them and effectively separating them, moving his had to push the human girl away from him and his brother.

"don't worry, i can take it from here."

"... He's still my friend Sans."

"then i'll make sure to call you when i'm going away for a weekend vacation so you can come and spend time with him."

"BROTHER! SURELY YOU WOULDN'T GO ON VACATION WITHOUT YOUR BELOVED BROTHER, WOULD YOU?"

"no," Sans said, his eyes never leaving her. "i wouldn't paps."

Grillby adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat, breaking the silence that had descended upon the group of monsters and the two odd out humans. Jason had remained quiet most of the time. Sans supposed it had something to do with the fact that he didn't really know the monsters too well and it seemed to be more of a family or best friend sort of exchange.

 _ _At least one of them has sense. At least he knows his place. She should learn her's too.__

To be honest, Sans was so on edge that if Jason had tried to insert himself into the exchange, he would've probably would've snapped. Seeing __her__ with his brother, trying to comfort him like nothing was wrong had almost set him off. The remnants of the magic hiding just below his bones still continued to internally crackle and his phalanges to twitch needing a magical release of some sort. While he was in his own thoughts, it seemed like everything had gone back to normal because Alphys and Undyne had arrived with goods of their own... probably the same quality as Papyrus' current cooking skills considering Undyne was his teacher. Alphys.. well, it was the thought that counted. Even if Grillby was the only reason that he didn't starve to re-death, it was still a wide array of goods that were mismatched but somehow had perfect harmony, just like his friends.

"... oh. I lost..." Sans heard and looked at Napstablook who had glanced at the controller and then looked at Muffet and sighed. "I'm sorry... I tried."

"Don't worry, Dearie~ You almost had me~"

"... oh... does that make me good?"

"YES!" Mettaton assured his cousin and smiled brightly, patting the top of his ever-present pair of headphones. Sans couldn't help but wonder if there was something he was always listening to or if it was like a security blanket for his friend. "THAT'S THE CLOSEST THAT ANYONE HAS EVER COME TO BEATING MUFFET!"

"... really?"

"It's true, Dearie~!"

A small smile came onto Napstablook's face and if he had've had hands, he probably would've clapped from the excitement that was in his eyes. He wasn't very good at showing emotions, but it was obvious how excited the shy ghost was that he had done something that only __he__ had been able to do.

"... heh... thanks."

The smile quickly faded from Sans' face when he saw that the couch had two more people on it, effectively taking the space that he had marked his. Even when he wasn't sitting on the couch, the other monsters didn't fill the space since they all knew it was Sans' spot. His socket slightly twitched and only more so when he watched her legs rest on Jason's thighs and a giggle parted from her lips. Both of them seemed focused on the game and were taking turns only to have Muffet's streak rise. He felt something in him snap, watching as the two snuggled down deeper into the couch, in __his__ spot. Quickly, he took a step forward but was shocked when he was almost bungied back to where he had previously been. Upon inspection, Grillby was holding onto the hood of his jacket with a look on his face of obvious disapproval and exasperation. Sans' pinpricks rolled in his sockets and he shrugged his jacket back onto his shoulder. He looked back at the spot where the two humans were laughing and chatting with the rest of his friends. On the bottom left of the screen, Muffet's streak was at 45. Grillbs still had the same look on his face and Sans sighed. They had been friends for so many years that their emotions were practically tangible among each other and one would think they could communicate almost telepathically. Without Grillby, it was hard telling what Sans would've done.

 _ _Is it worth it?__

He could practically hear Grillby's voice burning in his ear. Sighing again, he folded his arms almost childishly. The laughter between his friends at this unorthodox Halloween party. To them though, among the humans, every day was still Halloween (you know, being monsters and all), and since they didn't want to dress as Humans, they just contented themselves to be with each other in a small party. This wasn't true for all monsters through, but to Sans, these were the only ones that mattered (save the two odd ones out on the couch). So no, it wasn't worth it. He raised his hands in defeat, conceding to his best friend and older brother figure. Feeling the tension release on his hood, he turned back to Grillby and parted his mouth to speak but Grillby simply held up a hand and smiled. The smile, this time a genuine one, came to Sans' face but quickly turned wicked when he heard the doorbell ring. All of the heads turned to the door and some began to count all present. Grillby even looked confused. He went to the door and opened it,

"fall." He said and smiled, and then looked at the outfit that she was wearing. It was a costume. Granted, it wasn't a monster costume; just a simple witch costume with a shorter dress. Sans instantly felt bad because he hadn't told her that they don't really do costumes. "...oh." He had let her in and watched as all the monsters and the two Humans in his spot all looked shocked.

"Huh...?"

"WHY ARE YOU WEARING A COSTUME STRANGE HUMAN?" Papyrus asked as... eloquently as usual. Fall's face... well, fell. She looked extremely embarrassed and on the verge of tears. To her, it probably looked like she was invited here in order to make fun of her. However, that really couldn't be further from the truth.

"it's my fault." Sans said and hoped that Fall's tears would fade away.

"OH! YOU DIDN'T TELL HER DID YOU?"

"no, i forgot. hey, uh, fall. come with me, okay?" Sans said and put a hand on the small of her back and led her towards the stairs. He could let her roam around in the costume for the rest of the night. It's not exactly like it was a bad costume or that it looked... bad on her. In fact, she looked incredibly... __amazing__ in it. All the way up the stairs, he made glances at her and saw that she looked saddened and still had a blush on her face from the embarrassment. "look, i'm really sorry i didn't mention it. don't worry though. no one was really offended and paps, he really didn't mean it to sound like that. he's just blunt and very innocent."

He opened the door to his room and let her inside. It was tidier than normal, but it still wasn't really up to standards for most. He was worried that it would be a turn-off for her or that she would look at him differently. Of course, he should've realized that she had other things on her mind. However, his apology seemed to sate her since her blush was slowly disappearing, and he noticed that it reached the top of her breasts that were peeking from the dress that showed cleavage. He opened his closet and sifted through the clothes to get her a large shirt. She was short, had to be around 5 foot even or 4 foot 11 inches. He went over to her and handed her the shirt, slightly embarrassed himself.

"Oh." Fall said, her blush returning to her face for a different reason. She took the shirt and looked up at Sans and they both looked away.

"i figured it would make you more comfortable. i'll wait outside the door and you can just leave the costume on the bed." Sans said and shoved his hands back into his pockets before exiting the room and closing the door behind him.

It wasn't long, but Sans found himself anxious. His friends weren't judgemental in the least bit and he couldn't care less on what the other Humans thought to be honest. This little mishap was his fault anyway, so even if they had wanted to be a little harsh, there was no reason to be. He hoped that his apology had been sufficient enough for the long haul of the night instead of just for the moment. In the next moments, Fall had opened the door and come out of the room. Her hair was in a bun and undone from the small decorations that had been there. The shirt reached a little passed her knees and she smiled at him and blushed again, looking down at her toes and curling them almost like shes was trying to hide from the world. She was cute. Before he knew what he was doing, he had placed a hand on the small of her back and led her back down the stairs back to where the party had been. Silence filled the room for a moment, but only a second had passed before Grillby went up to her and held her hand and dipped his head in respect. Leave it to Grillby to make things easier for everyone else. He was used to meeting new people on a daily basis.

"Hello. I'm sorry for the very awkward moment you had when you first arrived. My name is Grillby. I own the bar in town."

"O-Oh, yes. I've always wanted to go in there. I'm Fall."

"You should definitely come visit. I'll put your food on Sans' tab."

"Oh no.. I couldn't do that."

Sans shrugged his shoulders and waved his hand dismissively,  
"eh, don't worry about it. i don't think i'll live long enough to pay it off anyway."

"Don't monsters live centuries though?" Fall asked, obviously embarrassed at having asked a question. Even though Monsters had been above ground for about 10 years, there were still many things that some humans didn't know about Monsters either because they didn't ask or because they didn't care.

"yeah, that's the point."

"Oh, I see."

One by one, Fall was introduced to the monsters that were at the party. With each warm introduction, Fall seemed to relax more and more. It had to be awkward for her, after all, she had arrived in something that they don't really do and other than Jason, she was surrounded by people that had known each other for __years__. It could be a little intimidating. By the time, she had gotten to Muffet, a bright smile was on the human girl's face.

"Sans, what's this all about?" Grillby asked his best friend slyly.

"she gave me her number when i went to get groceries. she was my cashier. so, i called her."

"You sure that's all it was?"

"of course."

"Don't use this girl for a hidden agenda." Grillby warned and adjusted his glasses at his friend again.

"..." Sans took another look at Fall who had been handed the controller and watched as she sat down by Muffet shyly, but the smile had still never left her face. "i won't, grillbs."

Cheering filled the room and clapping sounded from all sides. Fall had a smile on her face and looked at the screen that displayed __WINNER!__ and her character flashed on the screen. She had shockingly beat Muffet's streak. Muffet looked over at Fall and clapped two of her hands. Muffet was always a good sport and Fall blushed at all the attention that she was gathering. He was glad his friends were accepting her as easily as they were. He was also shocked that she was accepting __them__ as easily as she was. He glared at the human girl and Jason and glared.

"W-What?" __She__ said.

"... move." Sans said and jerked his chin towards the other part of the couch. Since Fall had one, everyone was moving around to different spots anyway in order to make things easier and get more comfortable. The girl and Jason hadn't moved at all during the whole time and he was tired of being polite. Jason had parted his lips in an attempt to protest, but __she__ had silenced him before he could even get started. He watched as the two got up, releasing his spot back to its owner. He plopped down, listening to the familiar __jingle__ of coins stuck in various places of the torn mustard yellow couch. It really was time to get a new one, but there were so many memories attached to this one, he couldn't see himself getting rid of it. He looked back over at Fall and she was looking around, trying to figure out where she would sit next since she was the champion now needing to be beaten. "sit here." He said and patted the spot next to him in his spot. She tried to hide it, but Sans noticed the blush on her cheeks before sitting down next to him, and not even paying attention to the sound that was made somewhere behind him. The next round had just started when Sans sat up and looked around.

"What's wrong?" Alphys asked and sniffed the air.

"MY EXOTIC BREAD!" Papyrus dramatically gasped and ran for the kitchen.

"What did I tell you, Papyrus!?" Undyne asked and followed after him.

"... I knew this would happen." Jason muttered under his breath and shut his trap when Sans glared at him. Smoke filled the air and Papyrus dramatically gasped again.

"Let's get the hell out of here!" Undyne exclaimed.

"OF COURSE DARLING! I CAN'T BE SMELLING LIKE BURNT EXOTIC BREAD!" Mettaton said and got up, bowls tipping over as well as glasses soaking the carpet in some places and covering it in fries, buns, chips, popcorn and various other snacks.

"I NEED TO SAVE IT!" Papyrus said.

Since he was used to things like this, Grillby just rolled up his sleeves to his elbows and adjusted his glasses again.  
"I'll get the bread, Papyrus. Just go outside with the others."

"PLEASE SAVE IT, GRILLBY!"

"... I'll try my best, Papyrus."

Outside, the group of friends looked at the smoke billowing from various places in the house. Sans internally sighed at what was becoming all too familiar for him. He looked down and saw Fall hugging her shoulders and shivering slightly. Sans undid his jacket and helped her put it on and knelt down slightly in order to zip it up for her. When he stood back to his full height, he patted her head and smiled when she smiled up at him, another blush dusting her cheeks. He didn't notice that out of the corner of his eyes, the girl that had the hand on her waist frowned and leaned against the blond man at her side. The friends were talking among themselves and Sans glanced at Papyrus who was being comforted by Undyne and trying to calm the pacing skeleton. The others in the group didn't seem too worried. Grillby emerged from the smoke filled home with a baking tray full of... what __used__ to be garlic bread. Charred was too light of a word to describe the way that they looked.

"NO!" Papyrus exclaimed and Undyne patted his back. The others stayed in silence for a moment, letting him grieve. Unfortunately, someone had to say something stupid.

"Well... is there a trashcan nearby?" Jason had asked and had eyes dart to him so fast, he flinched.

"A... TRASHCAN?! HOW DARE YOU!" Papyrus exclaimed and picked up a... black brick of former bread. "THEY HAD LIVES!"

"Lives?"

"YES! WE MUST BURY THEM!"

Jason scratched the back of his head and looked at Papyrus and had to speak again. "But... why bury bread? Well, I guess it makes good fertilizer, right?"

"FERTILIZER!? HOW DARE YOU, YOU UNCULTURED SWINE!" Papyrus insulted?, and continued to cry.

"yeah, paps, we'll give 'em a proper funeral. like always." Sans assured his little brother.

"I KNEW YOU WOULD UNDERSTAND BROTHER!"

Fall stood up on her tiptoes and whispered to Sans,  
"Does this happen a lot?"

"you get used to it." Sans answered with a small smile and a shrug.

* * *

 _Author's Note: This chapter was heavy on dialogue, but I felt like it was necessary to introduce Fall (and yes there is a reason that I didn't name her Autumn). I hope that you all liked this chapter and that you enjoyed meeting Fall. Also, I want to make it clear that I type how they talk in the game. Since Papyrus and Mettaton talk in all caps, that's how I write them. Since Sans has no capitalization, that's how I write him. Trust me, it can get aggravating, but I feel like its a minor way to stay true to the characters. Please let me know what you all think._


	6. Faith

It had only been a couple minutes since Grillby and Sans had entered the smoking house making sure to leave the door open to start airing it out. Grillby went into the kitchen, seeing through the thick smokescreen like it wasn't even there. All the while, Sans was internally cringing at the loud _beeping_ emitting through the empty home by the smoke alarm. It was reminding him to uninstall it for _when_ this happened again. The sound continued to grate on his nonexistent nerves even while Grillby grabbed a trash bag and held it open awaiting charred items. One after another, items that had once been a part of their daily life were tossed behind him and landed with a _clank_ inside of the trash bag. Sans was just about to throw a blackened baking pan behind him but was stopped by the warm voice.

"Full."

"… right."

Sans glanced out of the corner of his sockets, Grillby was tying the drawstring in multiple knots. Bulges from multiple pans and pots poked the polyethylene of the bag begging for a release from their constraints. He had just been tossing everything that had been blackened, charred, or even had a smoke smell-he had been through this situation enough to know that the smell was daunting to get out, if it _ever_ came out-that he hadn't realized how much he was truly getting rid of. When Grillby opened another garbage bag behind him, he looked at the counters. All black. Some renovations were going to have to be made. Almost everything in the whole kitchen was black and smelled of smoke. This was probably the worst that this has ever been.

"It'll be fine." Grillby tried to assure, but his friend's crackling voice did nothing to sate his worry or his slight depression. He knew that his brother didn't mean any harm and he wasn't _truly_ mad at his brother, he never could be. It was still depressing though to watch his best friend leave with almost all his and Paps' kitchen items to throw them away.

A couple hours had passed and Grillby and Sans had almost successfully cleared every piece of charred belongings from the home. The trashcans outside were miserably full leaving the living room and kitchen a little barren. Sans could already hear his favorite pen scratching against job applications to raise some money to refill their home. He took a deep breath and closed his sockets-trying to drown out that _agonizing_ beep. _Priorities. Getting all of this out was priority-_ and tossed another baking sheet into the trash bag Grillby was holding open. All the bowls that had been in the living room had to be thrown away which meant he would owe his friends some money or replacements. The smoke from the fire had billowed out and into the air. Sans knelt and opened the small drawer at the bottom of the oven leading to more storage space for their pans along with the many metal utensils that Papyrus liked to keep there much to Sans' chagrin. He had hoped that these had escaped the smoke and fire's dangerous heat, but no such luck.

"troublesome fire…" Sans muttered and heard an aggravated crackle from behind him. "excluding present company, of course."

"That's what I thought."

Sans wasn't afraid of much in life, but Grillbs was one thing that terrified him. It wasn't that his LV was high, neither was his EXP… but Grillby had something even more terrifying at his disposal; he could tell him-and be serious-about making him pay back his tab. He wouldn't be able to pay it back even if he worked the rest of his long, _long_ monster life. He would also have a hard time getting a decent paying job since some places were still discriminating against monsters working for them.

"heh, sorry grillbs."

By the time they got back to the front of the house, the smoke had completely cleared. It was nice to see his house again. Sans was just about to speak when the fire alarm gave another _beep,_ like it was desperate for attention. With a gold flash in his eye and a quick ball of blue fire, the fire alarm had given its last shriek of warning with a large explosion. Out of the corner of his socket, he saw Jason flinch backwards so hard he almost fell. If _she_ hadn't been there to grab his arm, he might have. Shockingly enough, Fall didn't even seem phased at him using such intense magic without warning. Many humans still wanted at least a few seconds warning before using any level of magic. Then again, there was just something about Jason that didn't set right with him. It wasn't because he was _her_ boyfriend either. Just with the way he side-longed some glances at the monsters, and at Fall. He found himself not liking it. Of course, Grillby had told him before that he had been wrong with people… which was true.

"BROTHER, I AM SORRY FOR RUINING OUR PARTY… MAYBE I'M NOT THE GREAT PAPYRUS AFTER ALL…" If Sans had any blood in his body, it would've turned cold. There wasn't much going on in Sans' life, however, his docile life with his brother was the thing he cherished the most. Papyrus was always smiling and fun-loving. He was able to make everyone happy without even trying with his cheerful voice and oblivious nature. It was soul breaking to see Papyrus' shoulders slump in defeat and his smile fade.

"c'mon paps, you know that's not true." Sans said and shrugged his shoulders. He trudged over to his younger brother, smirking when he met socket contact with his only family. "things happen, hell, you know that i've done some stupid things before. we all have off days, today just happened to be yours." Seconds felt like hours when Papyrus didn't answer him right away. What felt like an eternity later, he lifted his head up and the smile had returned with full force,

"YOU'RE RIGHT SANS! TODAY WAS JUST AN "OFF DAY"!" Papyrus complimented and put his hands on his hips and watched as Sans nodded, taking out his comb and running it across his skull absentmindedly before returning it to his shorts pocket. "WELL, NOW THAT OUR HOSUE IS UNABLE TO BE USED FOR THE PARTY, WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO NOW?"

Sans glanced over at the group of people that were with them; the monsters didn't seem too bothered with the cold. Fall however, even though she was trying to hide it, was shivering. How could he forget to at least let her inside? After all, she wasn't really dressed well for this occasion.  
"c'mon, let's head back inside. it must be cold out here for you."

"N-No, I'm alright. Don't worry…" Fall said, her cheeks red. Sans wondered offhandedly if it was from the cold or a blush at being found out that she had been lying. He settled with _both_.

"hm, too late kid." Sans muttered under his breath and walked in with the rest of his friends, having Undyne close the door behind the group and ignoring the sigh that came from a tad bit behind him. With a glance at the clock, he noted that it was too early to call it a night, and Paps would be upset if he pooped out. It was only around nine thirty, but he was so exhausted.

"My bar is closed, but if desired, I can open it up and continue the party there." Grillby adjusted his glasses, the fire crackling as he did so.

"OH DARLING! THAT'S PERFECT!" Mettaton gushed, clasping his hands together.

"YES! IT IS A VERY GOOD IDEA." Papyrus agreed, his smile even brighter than it had been earlier.

Sans glanced out of the corner of his eye, seeing Fall fiddling with a stray thread on his jacket that she was still wearing. He had been so focused on restoring the house to the best of his abilities he had forgotten. He raised a brow bone and continued to watch her, digging her toe into the carpet. The monsters were chattering among themselves, setting the plan in stone that the party would continue at Grillby's.  
"go on ahead, i'll meet you there." Sans said and scratched the back of his cranium.

"WE SHALL WAIT IN ANTICIPATION FOR YOUR ARRIVAL!" Papyrus complimented and ran out with some of their friends, the others following close behind.

When Fall glanced at the door and started to head out, he grabbed her wrist. She went rigid and he couldn't help but think that she was worried about hanging out with a bunch of monsters. Many humans had been like that, even all these years later: they'd pretend they were okay with monsters and want to co-exist with them, but when one touched them or got too close they would revert to their discriminatory ways. Aggravated that he was letting it get to him, he let her wrist go with no words.

"Um…" Fall began, still looking down at the floor. "It's a walk to Grillby's and… I don't have any… pants on…" A tomato red blush covered her face, reaching to the tips of her ears. A small blue blush of his own dusted his cheeks and he scratched at the back of his ivory dome again.

 _how could i forget that?_

Clearing his throat, he glanced at the stairs,  
"hey, fall, follow me." He said, seeing her not even hesitate in following him. How could he have been so rude in thinking that Fall was like those other humans he had encountered? He would have to apologize to her later and take whatever punishment she would deem adequate to group her in with those discriminatory humans. Hell, maybe he was a bit of the same way as those humans. He didn't like that thought though. Thankfully, his door had been closed so his room remained untouched by the smoky smell of the fire. Among the mess in his room, her costume still laid perfectly neat on his sheet-less bed. "hey, kid, putting that back on isn't going to help you with the cold."

"Well that's true," She agreed holding the costume in her hand with her other on the zipper of his jacket. "Either way, it's not like I can just keep these clothes."

Sans was too busy sifting through his messy closet to answer her, not that there was anything to say. He may be lazy and somewhat nihilistic, but even _he_ wasn't soulless enough to let her make the trip to Grillby's in just a T-shirt and a jacket. If they teleported, it would knock out all of the walking, but at the same time being at the party in a bar may be a little awkward for her. A smile came to his face when he held up the piece of fabric he was looking for,

"Basket ball shorts?" Fall asked.

"yeah, put these on. i don't really have much variety in the clothes department, but, something is better than nothing right kid?"

This time, it was _her_ turn to not respond. She held the shorts in her hands, the blush still on her face. How in the world did she have enough gumption to give him her phone number when she was standing here blushing at everything he did or said? Maybe he would ask her about that later, if he remembered. "i'll wait outside." He left and closed the door behind him. She hadn't been phased seeing him decimate his smoke alarm with magic, but randomly teleporting may have been too much for the already frazzled girl. A few moments later, she came out with the shorts on and the drawstring tightened to make sure that they stayed on her hips. She had taken off the jacket and held it out to him, which he declined. "monsters aren't as prone to the elements as you humans are." He informed. "so keep it, i'll get it back from you later." Shoving his hands in his own shorts, he smirked when she was donned in his jacket again. "y'know, i wondered a lot of the time what i would look like as a girl, but with you dressed like that, i can get a pretty good idea."

"H-Hey!" Fall said and zipped up the jacket.

"it's a compliment kid."

With Fall in tow, he walked towards the door and had a phalange over the light switch.  
"did you want to walk, or we could-"

"Do that teleport thing you do?"

"y-yeah… how-"

"Well, you've been coming to my store for a few years, sometimes you would use your magic outside of the store to get back home quicker." Fall admitted, playing with the same thread she had been previously. "I don't mind going that way… as long as it's not too hard on you."

"alright." Sans went over and touched the small of her back. "i need close contact to bring you with." In truth, he didn't know how close one needed to be. She was the first person he had tried it with other than... He knew it would work, there was no questions about that. He just wanted to make sure that it would be okay for her to be this close to him. When she didn't protest, he took a step forward and brought them both in the void between this part of the world and the next. They came out right in front of Grillby's. Fall staggered a bit and grabbed onto the sleeve of his shirt for stabilization.

"S-Sorry…" She stammered but gripped on tighter.

"no need to be sorry, kid. the first person i took with me puked when we-for lack of a better word-landed."  
"O-Oh…" Fall blinked, and her grip loosened on his shirt enough to where she could stand up on her own. "Maybe it's something humans have to get used to."

"hm, maybe." Sans guided her into the bar by the small of her back.

By the time they got in the bar, everything and _everyone_ was in full force. Grillby was behind the counter serving drinks and food to his friends, continuously shining his favorite glass. Out of the corner of his socket, he saw Papyrus and Undyne sitting in a booth with Alphys. Jason and…the girl…were sitting at the bar awaiting some food. Muffet was helping to serve the food that all the friends were ordering while Mettaton was providing entertainment in the form of singing and dancing while Napstablook was playing music for them. Everyone seemed to be having a good time.

"SANS! YOU MADE IT!" Papyrus exclaimed when he noticed the party of two that had come into the bar. He hopped up out of his seat, onto the table and jumped to the floor in front of them. All the while Sans had his hands in his pockets. It was perfectly normal to watch his brother climb onto things he wasn't supposed to. "WE WERE BEGINNING TO WONDER WHERE YOU WERE. OH! SMALL HUMAN! YOU'RE WEARING SANS' CLOTHES."

"she didn't have any, so i let her borrow some of mine."

"SHE LOOKS LIKE THE HUMAN GIRL VERSION OF YOU!" Papyrus said and smiled brightly at Fall who had been taken aback by his very robust compliment. "IT LOOKS VERY GOOD ON YOU!"

"T-Thank you Papyrus."

"OF COURSE, SMALL HUMAN! ANY FRIEND OF SANS' IS A FRIEND OF MINE! NOW IF YOU'LL EXCUSE ME, I'M TRYING TO SOLVE THIS WEEKS PUZZLE IN THE PAPER ALPHYS BROUGHT." With another hop onto his table, he sat back down on his side of the booth, intently training his sockets on the words in front of him. Sans shrugged his shoulders and went to the bar, taking a seat and helping her onto his.

"What puzzle is he trying to solve?"

"the horoscope."

"The…"

"yep." Sans looked at Fall with his ever-present smile. "grillbs, can i get a burger for the lady here and an order of fries for me?"

Without a word, Grillby headed towards the back to cook their orders after setting a bottle of ketchup down in front of him. It wouldn't take too long, after all, a flame elemental monster could control the fire in his kitchen better than any human stove or oven could. That's part of the reason why he liked coming to Grillby's, other than to spend time with his best friend. The food was always cooked exactly how you liked it, even if you didn't tell him. Sans was focused on the sounds around him, sipping on the ketchup Grillby had left him. The smell of the food was wafting from the kitchen via the small gap at the bottom of the door. No doubt, the food would be done soon. He could already taste the food that would be sat in front of him. The fries would be worth the headache of throwing away a lot of the kitchen appliances.

"Um… Sans?"

"hm?" He swallowed the ketchup that was in his mouth and turned the barstool, hearing the all too familiar creak.

"How did you know to order me a burger?"

"when we were at my house, i saw you eyeing it with everything you are." He couldn't help but chuckle when Fall blushed a deep red. "no need to be so embarrassed about it. grillbs food is the best." As if on cue, Grillby came out and sat the plates down in front of them, putting another bottle of ketchup on the counter. "aw, and i didn't even have to ask."

"Not for you." Grillby said and pointed a thumb at Fall's burger.

"fine. you win." Sans held up his hands in defeat.

"Can I get you anything else, Miss?" Grillby politely asked.

 _always a charmer._

"Um, can I have a bit of alcohol?" Fall was meek about it. Why? This was a bar, order all the alcohol you want. "If it's not too much trouble."

"Of course, it isn't too much trouble." Grillby assured. "What would you like?"

"Um… I-I'm not too good with names. So just whatever you think would be good."

"As you wish."

Sans watched Grillby work at lightning speed, popping a fry into his mouth every now and again. It was nice to hear everyone laughing when just a few minutes ago it was full of sadness at almost catching their home on fire. He was worried that it was going to ruin their night, but of course, he should've known better. When it comes to Papyrus, no one can stay sad around him, so he ends up making everyone have a good time. The drink that he sat down in front of Fall was bright, colorful, and smelled nice. Her eyes widened, and she picked up the glass and looked at it.

"Wow! It's so pretty…"

"well kid," Sans saw motion out of the corner of his socket near the other end of the bar. "alcohol isn't meant to just _look_ pretty. taste it."

"Right. Right." She took a small sip from the straw that he had placed in the blue-green color show in a cup. "Ooh! Wow… This is really good."

"I'm glad you like it."

The more time that passed, the more Fall drank. The more that Fall drank, the more she would talk. The more that she would talk, the more she would get embarrassed; wash, rinse, and repeat until she was now the staggering mess next to him. She was on her third burger and fifth order of fries. She could really pack away some food. He was glad that she was eating that much bread and stuff that way she wouldn't get sick. He had learned from _her_ that it was a common thing for humans to do; surprisingly, it was recommended. It had been strange to him when they first arrived on the surface, but now it seemed obvious and normal. Papyrus was slamming his hand down on the table, excited that he had solved another puzzle in the Junior Jumble book that Sans had bought for him.

"Well, Frisk, are you ready to go?" Sans heard Jason from the other side of the bar.

"Yeah, it's getting late and I'm pretty tired."

Sans didn't really care where they went or what they did and continued watching Grillby and a drunk Fall continue their very weird conversation on how Grillby could touch things without getting burnt. Now her inquisitiveness had went to his clothes. However, one thing that sent his attention the humans' way was what Jason had whispered to her.

"Next time, can you not invite me to parties like these? It gets really uncomfortable with all these monsters around."

"Jason, stop that." She had whispered back. Sans wasn't really too shook about it, considering there were so many humans that still weren't accepting and from the way that he had been acting through the night, it wasn't a shock. What came next though…

"What? You can't tell me it's not weird. Especially that tall skeleton. Why does everyone try to kiss up to him? They're all making it sound like he can cook and he's talented but he's not. He's weird and a terrible cook. I mean he almost burned his own house down."

The pinpricks for pupils that he had disappeared leaving nothing but black sockets devoid of any positive emotion. No one around, but Grillby seemed to notice. He didn't ask but gave Sans a curious glance that did not get a anything in return.

"No, Paps can't cook, but he makes up for it with spirit and determination. He doesn't let anything falter his spirit and he's a good skeleton." _She_ commented, defending Paps. It wasn't like Sans didn't expect her to defend Papyrus, but that she continued to walk out with Jason washed away her defense like it hadn't even happened.

"Whatever, it sounds to me like he's just pathetic."

Sans squeezed the ketchup bottle, listening to the air escape the nozzle at the top. Just as the jingle of the bell sounded through the store signifying their leave, Sans teleported outside and stood in front of them earning an alarmed sound from Jason and a confused one from her. His eyes held no emotion but loathing and anger.

"S-Sans?" The girl commented, seeing the expression on his face.

"stay out of this." Sans ordered, his tone deepening a little bit. "this is between me and him."

"What? You and me don't have any business."

"Sans… You-"

"quiet." Sans commanded, and she listened. "you have a problem with my brother, huh?"

"…"

"i'm waiting."

"W-Well n- ah!" Jason yelled when Sans threw a bone in his direction scraping against the side of his face. "What are you doing?"

"Sans, stop!"

"monsters are pathetic huh?" Sans questioned, shooting a smaller bone his way, not intending to hit him. "papyrus has more heart than some of you _humans_ ever will." Papyrus was his weak spot. All their friends knew it, when something was said or done against his brother, all thoughts or morals went out the window. With a snap of his finger, he was surrounded by four Gaster Blasters, all pointing towards Jason. A tug on his sleeve, prevented another attack.

"I said 'stop'!" Sans' sharp glare looked down at his sleeve and saw his old friend attached to it for dear life.

"defending someone like him, huh? heh, figured as much. all you humans stick together." His words were filled with venom as he flung his arm, sending the girl a few feet away from him on her butt. His attention turned from the girl back to the cowering Jason. His smile turned more into a smirk and he snapped his phalanges, making the blasters disappear. "be thankful you have that girl with you."

"W-What? Why? What does Frisk have to do with this?" Jason asked, falling to his knees his legs being unable to keep him standing anymore. He screamed out when he was pulled towards Sans, nose to nose hole.

"'cause buddy, without her," Sans chuckled humorlessly, his sockets searing holes into Jason's eyes. Their gaze was so intense it felt like time had stopped. " **Y o u ' d**." With a flick of his wrist, Jason was sent further away, and a pained grunt escaped his lips upon impact. He knew that he didn't break the human's bones, he would've been able to tell. He sure was going to have one hell of a bruise there, that was for sure. He shoved his hands back in his pockets, having his back turned to the scene he had created between him and the two humans. He heard the girl get up and head towards where her boyfriend lay, ". . . don't let me catch either of you around my brother again."

The girl sounded like she was about to cry with her small, pitiful voice.  
"B-But, Sans… I-" He turned and looked at the girl, his sockets still black with anger.

" **u**." His tone of finality shut her up in just a split second. He left both humans outside. He couldn't believe it. She had defended him… Jason… the one who had insulted his brother. Humans really stuck together, even in these times. That must've been the reason that she wanted to leave the Underground. She just wanted to go back to the humans… They had been friends for years… At least he thought so. He wanted to believe it, but maybe it would be better if they hadn't been… then it wouldn't hurt this bad. Even if she didn't _explicitly_ agree with Jason, she wanted him to not hurt Jason. _Why_? He could only imagine how that would've hurt Papyrus if he had really heard it. He wasn't sure if he _wanted_ to know. He had lost all faith in Jason (not that he had much to begin with), he lost hope in humans, he lost faith in _Frisk_.


	7. Hate

_Author's Note: I'm sorry that it took me so long to get this out to you. I've had some family troubles. I'm not asking for pity, I'm just asking that you all be patient with me. I **promise** that I will always come back to this and I will finish it. I will not abandon it. I hope you'll all stick with me until the end._

* * *

He couldn't believe that it had come to this. After everything that had happened over the past decade, all the relationships that had been made and fostered throughout the years, it was all broken in such a small time. When he first had left the Underground with the rest of his friends, he couldn't have fathomed that the relationship he had made with the human would have been reduced to smoldering ashes.

 _in hind sight, perhaps it would've been better if i hadn't gotten close to the kid._

He had adhered to the promise that was made to Toriel; taking care of the child and watching over her. She had been a stoic little kid, honestly, a pain in his tailbone. Either way, the thought of her ending up like the other kids had kept him going. Whether it was because she was something special—with her determination—or whether it was because it was the promise he had made remains to be seen. Even now, ten years later, he refused to think too deep into it lest his mind wander to some place it shouldn't.

Shaking his head, like it would erase the thoughts like an etch-a-sketch, he gripped onto the remote and turned on the TV that resided in his room. Focusing his thoughts on something else only hit him with another problem; Fall. A nice girl. Genuinely sweet. So, it wouldn't have been a problem thinking about her… normally. Unfortunately, this wasn't normal.

She had been drunk by the time he had taken her home. It was rather difficult for her to walk, but she didn't live too far from Grillby's. Normally, he would've teleported to bring someone home, but she was already nauseous, so he was worried in doing so she would expel everything from her body. He had stayed there with her and made sure that she was securely in bed with everything that she needed before he started to head out. Not many things could make him stop in his tracks, but she had done so.

" _Frisk loves you."_

Frisk? Loved him? Preposterous. He had wanted to scoff and argue back that it couldn't be further from the truth. She hated him in fact. However, a drunken Fall wouldn't be able to have a conversation about this. It was debatable if she would even remember it the morning. The girl didn't know what she was saying, it was just a jumble of insecurities coming out in a breath of slurs. There was a time, what felt like centuries ago, where he would've maybe believed the words of a drunken woman.

 _not now… it never was. just the—no… there was no purpose now. leave it be._

He had been so lost in his thoughts and staring at the TV that he hadn't noticed Papyrus calling his name. He only realized that his attention should've been elsewhere when the battle body his brother wore had appeared between him and the TV that he wasn't really watching.

"SANS!"

"paps."

"DON'T PAPS ME BROTHER! I HAVE BEEN CALLING YOU FOR FIVE WHOLE MINUTES!"

"… sorry." Sans apologized, replacing the frown that had been on his face back to his perpetual smile that he faked more than was healthy. "what did ya need?"

"I HEARD FROM ALYPHS THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING ON THE TELEVISION THAT WAS OF INTEREST. SINCE THE GARLIC BREAD SMOKE BROKE OUR TV IN THE LIVING ROOM, I CAME IN HERE TO SEE IF WE COULD WATCH IT TOGETHER."

 _something interesting on television? paps could be watching a blank screen and think it was interesting. nothing of interest really happened in Ebott City and he liked it that way._

"ya think that maybe alphys was talking about that anime that she was waiting to come back on?"

"YOU MEAN MEW MEW KISSY CUTIE 3? OH! VERY SMART BROTHER! THAT COULD BE IT!"

"why don't you call and ask bro?"

"YES OF COURSE! IT'S NO WONDER THAT YOU'RE SO SMART WITH THE GREAT PAPYRUS AS YOUR BROTHER!" Papyrus left the room with his signature laugh. Sans' smile turned genuine and his sockets never left the TV as he held up the phone that had been left on his bed. Just as he did so, he could hear the loud _thunk_ of footsteps coming back to his room. "BROTEHR HAVE YOU-AH! THERE IT IS! YOU UH… YOU PASSED MY TEST! THIS WAS NONE OTHER THAN AN AMAZING PUZZLE CONCOTED BY THE GREAT PAPYRUS!" Quickly, he took his phone and headed back out again, shutting the door behind him.

Honestly, he couldn't help but wonder what Alphys was _really_ wanting Papyrus to watch. Granted, Papyrus was always a fan of the many anime he got to see on the surface, but why would he want to bring Sans into it? It was odd to say the least, but he figured Papyrus was taking things out of context like he usually did when he was on a phone call. It was better to talk to Papyrus in person that way he could be set straight at that moment or things could be clarified. Usually, Sans would go and call Alphys and try to figure out what was really meant, but he didn't feel like it. He looked out the window at the moon high up in the sky. Anger filled his bones. The stars twinkled in the sky, all close to each other without a care in the world. Frowning, he pulled the curtains together so fast they flew over each other and almost ripped off their designated space.

". . ." He rubbed a hand down his face and got on bed, pulling his blanket over his head and slamming his head against the pillow. The whole entire day had been ruined with that one question Fall has asked. Hopefully, when he woke up, it would all be different, and he could be just like he was and put this behind him. Closing his sockets did nothing but let the sinking feeling in his stomach move further. If he could throw up, he would've. Something wasn't right… When he had feelings like this, it was usually correct. Foreboding in a way.

"Sans."

". . ."

"Sans!"

The skeleton's attention was turned to the person in front of him; Grillby. He had zoned out there for a minute. It almost seemed like he was somewhere else. Hard to believe that he could get so into his head it seemed like he had went somewhere completely different; almost like teleporting, but just with the mind.

"sorry… what?"

"Your food." Sans looked down at the burger and fries that were in front of him along with a bottle of ketchup.

"thanks, grillbs."

The wooden walls echoed the sounds of laughter among the other patrons. None of them seemed concerned with the small scene at the bar. Or, perhaps, they were trying to stay out of it lest they get yelled at. Sans figured either were possible and tried to focus on the _clanking_ of silverware against plates and glasses being picked up and put back down on the table but was interrupted by Grillby.

"How are you holding up, Friend?"

"fine." Sans lied. Glancing up from the top of his sockets, he could see that his excuse didn't fly. "i've… been better."

Grillby wiped the glass while he stared at Sans. The older skeleton brother could tell his best friend was thinking. About what? Most likely what to say without setting him off. In the year that had passed, Sans had been showing up less and less to the familiar and happy establishment. It was hard to pretend that he was happy in public. The only place he felt truly happy anymore was when he was with his brother. The second was when he was with Fall. Neither of them had said they were dating, but Sans had stopped his promiscuous behavior and his drinking habit, and she was the reason for it.

"You know… you were the one who said it." Grillby finally answered, which made Sans look away and towards the maroon curtains that were parted to show the beautiful night. Grillby was right, Sans had no right to complain or feel down. His friend had wondered why Frisk wasn't showing up as much as she used to. It was hard to tell the flame elemental that Frisk had stood up for a human, especially one who had dissed his brother, but when he managed to get it all out Grillby had stopped, almost like the fire had went out and frozen. "You really don't have a right to act upset at Frisk's absence when you were the one that caused it."

". . ."

 _i know that…_

"So-"

The bell marking an entrance by a customer echoed in the room. He didn't turn around, just went rigid. The perfume that filled the air was unmistakable. In the year that had passed since their altercation, he had probably seen her all of three times. Hard to believe considering the town was so small. Then again, he holed himself up in his room, at Fall's, or at the small part-time job he had. The squeak of the stool next to him sounded louder than anything he had ever heard before. Glancing out of the corner of his sockets, he saw her.

 _Frisk._

Something was… _wrong_ with her. The toll of their shattered relationship had taken the toll on her as well, that much was obvious. As at odds at they were before, severing the relationship was something he hadn't really thought of until that night. She looked… hollowed out. That would be the best way to describe it. She was staring ahead and not even trying to engage into a conversation. That was strange. Frisk was a pacifist, and always wanted everyone to live together in peace and harmony; a pacifist as well as an idealist. A quick glance at Grillby said that he seemed to notice it too. He stopped wiping the glass down and adjusted his glasses. Frisk barely moved in her seat and her eyes gently jolted to where Grillby was. Although, even though she was looking at him, her eyes more belayed the fact that she was looking _through_ him.

"Frisk."

"…"

"Frisk?"

Still the human didn't answer. Sans leaned an elbow on the bar and had fully turned to look at her. Siding with a human or not, he didn't like seeing her like this. Anyone, but _her._ It wasn't like he really cared about her as she is now, but he tried to force himself to think of how she _used_ to be in this moment. The same young woman who would come to his house in the middle of the night after she got a movie and want to watch it, the same young woman who would end up falling asleep halfway into the movie because of the long walk from her house to his. The same young woman who was once a kid who would sit on his lap while she would read kid's books.

"Frisk." Grillby tried again, moving in her vision to see if that would startle her to become aware. When that didn't work, Sans sighed and rolled his sockets trying to play it off like it was annoying, and he didn't care. He took a French fry from his plate and tossed it at her, hitting her in the face. The sensation jolted her and she let out a sound of something between shock and fear. "Hey, are you alright?"

"W-What?" Frisk asked, blinking and looking around freezing again when her gaze locked onto Sans.

"ya back with us, kid?"

"… Sans-"

"not like i care or anything," _liar._ "but grillbs was really worried about ya."

"O-Oh… I'm sorry. I-I got distracted."

"Distracted?" Grillby asked and glanced at Sans to see if he bought it. Negative. "By?"

"My own thoughts." Frisk retorted and looked at Grillby.

"sounds lonely." Sans commented and tossed a fry into his mouth. He had thought many times about how their next encounter was going to happen. What it would be like. What would be said… nothing he had thought of was coming close to this. "can't imagine much is going on up there." Out of the corner of his sockets he saw Grillby shook his head in exasperation and Frisk's eye slightly twitched like it did when she was aggravated.

"More going on than there is in _your_ head."

"that so?" Sans commented, popping another fry into his mouth.

"As a matter of fact, it is!"

"hm."

"Frisk, you're wearing makeup?" Grillby commented, trying to diffuse the situation before it could blow up into a whole establishment fight. Already, the sounds of happy patrons were decreasing to a lower murmur. Frisk went rigid for a moment, but anyone who wasn't paying real close attention would've been able to see. Sans could see the light eye twitch again when the smirk spread across his face,

"you said you hated makeup." He pushed, watching Grillby look up at the ceiling as if praying he would set off the highly resistant sprinklers to wash this situation away. Luck wasn't on his side. He had just given Sans more ammo, and with how aggravated and betrayed he was, Grillbs better believe that Sans was going to push it as far as he could go. What else could he have to lose with their relationship? They already hated each other. What the hell was she hiding with her makeup? Grillby wasn't lying. This was the first time she had ever worn makeup.

"I-I do!" Frisk exclaimed, glaring at Sans.

"you planning on going on a date with your boyfriend?" He prodded.

"Well yes! I am!"

… _i asked for that._

"where?"

"The movies!"

"that so?"

"Yes, it is." Sans couldn't help but smirk even wider. She was so easy to unravel. "Then we're going to go and get dinner!"

"really?" He knew that he was treading on eggshells, and he just continued to stop. Let them crack, break; shatter. It didn't matter to him anymore. He looked over at her and chuckled.

"What? You got an issue?"

The sound in Grillby's had stopped completely and all eyes were on them. He could feel them, but to be honest, he didn't care. His only goal right now was to push the kid off the edge. Did he want to make her cry? No. As much of a sarcastic asshole as he was, he didn't want to see anyone cry. Especially… someone who was once a very important person to him.

"you're a liar."

"What did you just say?" Frisk jumped out of her stool and glared at him. Hands on her hips.

 _there it is._

Sans chuckled and got out of his own stool like it was a chore. He hadn't stood this close to her _years,_ so it was hard to believe that she was still so much shorter than him. Yet here she was. He could rest his arm on top of her head.

"you've actually got ears kid, and i know they work."

Sans smirked, seeing rage fill her small form. So much anger from a small human. It was funny, when he thought about it from that perspective. The glare-off was harsh enough to almost produce literal sparks; both extremely determined to prove their point and win. It almost seemed a matter of pride for him, and from the look in her eyes; her as well.

"I told you I'm not-"

"yeah yeah, going on a date with your boy toy and getting dinner. i heard you."

"So?!" Frisk smirked and took a step closer. "And he's my _boyfriend_ not a _boy toy_! But you don't know anything about that, do you?" The sound of an under the breath _ooh_ could be heard from one of the monsters in the restaurant section of Grillby's. Sans chuckled again and shrugged. He was pushing dangerously close to the edge; this could end one of three ways—that he could think of off the top of his cranium—and well, he supposed he'd just have to throw caution to the wind and keep it up.

"and?"

"What…?"

"is that the best you've got kid?" He asked. "besides, we're not talking about what i do. we're talking about how you're lying in front of everyone."

"… I'm not lying." Frisk clenched her fists. "What makes you think I'm lying?"

"you're going to dinner."

"Yes! What is with you? Are you going senile? Or are you too drunk to comprehend what I'm saying?"

"where are you?"

"What?"

"well?"

"I-Is this a trick question?"

"is it indeed?"

He glanced at the bar and saw the menu that Grillby had placed in front of her when she first sat down. He already knew what she wanted, her order hadn't changed much in the past ten years, but it was habit. It only furthered his questioning. Maybe he should've been a detective. That was too much work though.

"I'm in Grillby's." Frisk answered, and Sans could see her fists unclench, her eyebrows raising over blue eyes as deep as the ocean.

 _stop._

"good job."

"Don't patronize me."

Sans snickered and heard the squeak of a chair a few tables away and a quick _shh_ to quiet the person down. She wasn't perfect. All of the monsters thought that their Savior was just some sweet, innocent young woman who wouldn't hurt a fly. Pacifist or no, he knew what kind of person she could be.

"me? never."

"… So, I answered your question."

"…what is that?" He jutted his thumb to the bar where they had been sitting.

"A menu?"

"bingo."

"What's your-" Frisk stopped short, seeming to realize where she had screwed up.

"sinking in yet?"

"I don't get it…" One of the patrons in the bar whispered to one of the other monsters. Most of the eyes remained on them while others seemed to be looking at the evidence that was presented.

"I-I have no idea what you're talking about!"

"oh kid, i think you do. why would you need a menu… at a restaurant, if you were going to a movie and dinner? also, isn't it usually dinner and _then_ a movie?"

"I-I wanted a change. And, a snack before the movie!"

"a double burger and a large order of fries is a rather large snack, isn't it?"

Sans smirked when her blue pools glared at his own white pinpricks, his smirk only seeming to anger her more. He had backed her up into a corner, and even though he hated her… he had to admit that she looked cute when she was trying to figure out how to get out of the hole she had just dug for herself. This wasn't just about the makeup. It was the principal. If she wasn't going to wear makeup to her own parent's wedding, what the hell made her think he was going to believe the fact that she was wearing it for some non-existent 'date'. He wasn't going to lie, it was also part of his own sick desire to see her break.

"…"

"sorry, didn't hear that. speak up."

"Sans." This time it was Grillby who was talking. Sans just ignored his best friend. There was no way that he was going to back down now.

"go on and share with the class."

"…" Sans noticed her fists clenched again, so hard this time that her knuckles were turning white from the force.

 _almost there._

"hm… that's what i thought. now, how about you tell us what you're hiding?"

"What does it matter to you, huh?" Frisk yelled, taking another step forward. "We're not anything!" Sans didn't back down from her venomous tone, in fact, it just entertained him more. "We're not even friends!" This seemed to be news to a lot of people in Grillby's.

"go ahead and tell me what you really feel, huh kid?" Sans taunted, shrugging his shoulders and shaking his head. "don't hold back."

"You know what I think of you?"

"hm?" This time, it was Sans' turn to take a step forward. They were mere inches apart. These weren't romantic sparks flying between them though, despite what some of the customers seemed to think by them leaning forward. Oh no, these were sparks of—

"I hate you! Absolutely _hate_ you! _Loathe_ you!" Frisk yelled.

 _here's your precious 'savior'. she's just like any other human. vicious. hateful. only caring about their own kind. what would you all think if you knew she defended a human who would've went after a monster given the chance?_

"What's with you?"

"what do you mean?" His faux innocence only seemed to piss her off more. For someone so short, he had to admit that she had one hell of an explosion when she blew up.

"This! This third degree!"

"you mean this burn?"

"Don't you da—"

"guess you could say i was just 'grilling' you."

 _Smack!_

An ice cube clanked against a glass just as her palm met his jaw bone. The force had made his head turn the opposite way, she was strong. His tongue ran against his bottom teeth as his bony hand ran over the place where her hand had turned his ivory bone red, marked with a small, dainty; but potentially lethal hand. Gasps could be heard dotting the tables and booths, some even peeking from behind the curtain of the bar side. Opening and closing his mouth cracked his jaw. His white pinpricks turned to look at Frisk. Normally, people would be terrified of doing such a thing to someone who could literally ruin your life by turning all your sins back against you, but she held no fear or remorse.

 _admirable._

"i love the way you hurt me." Sans didn't even try to hide his condescending tone or his smug smirk.

"Go to Hell!" She yelled and turned on her heels and headed towards the door, the standing customers quickly moving out of her way.

"i already am whenever you're around." Sans retorted, still rubbing his jaw.

"I should've left _just_ you in the Underground."

Sans couldn't help but laugh much to the shock of the other customers. That was one of the worst insults that someone could throw at a monster. To leave them in a place where there was no hope; only despair. Hearing that from the exact person who delivered them from that must've been a huge blow to some of them. He could tell that she really wanted to leave, but at the same time, part of her was seemingly obligated to listen to the whole thing almost like her soul was drawn to it despite how much it pissed her off.

"too bad. i'm a bone-fide member of Ebott City now." His smirk widened when she screamed out in frustration at his all too perfectly timed pun, replacing his hands back at their home in his jacket pocket.

" _hey!"_ was the only warning that he got before a glass from a nearby table was thrown in his direction. Sans tilted his head a few inches to the left to avoid the glass and without a second to waste, Grillby had reached out and grabbed the glass in the air, his expression never changing. Owning a bar that was open to monsters as well as humans, he was used to catching flinging tableware of various sorts along with alcohol bottles. He chuckled when she left with a slam of the door behind her, the bell angrily yelling at her harsh treatment of the door.

"Was that necessary?" Grillby asked when Sans sat back down at his seat and filled up another glass of alcohol to take to the monster who had been the victim of Frisk's outburst against tableware.

"absolutely." Sans said without hesitation, popping another fry into his mouth.

* * *

 _Author's Note: I hope you liked it and that it was worth it. I know that it was really heavy on dialogue, but I wanted to show the shift between Sans and Frisk's relationship and how it's affecting the people around them. I hope you liked it and that it was worth the wait. Let me know what you think. Have a good day/night._


	8. Beginning

First of all, I would like to apologize (I tend to do that a lot) for the month and some change that you've been waiting for the update on "Trouble". If some of you have moved on to different fanfictions, then I will understand as I don't have a right to ask you to stay and wait with me since you all have lives and I'm sure get tired of waiting for mine to get back on fucking track. Trust me, I know the feel.

However, I feel it's only fair to let you guys know what has been keeping me away from writing.

First of all, I had a lack of motivation and a lot of self-doubt lately. While I like to put emotion into my fanfictions, I didn't feel that hostile and deep an emotion as I was feeling should be put into my fanfiction without reason.

Second of all (the main reason), the "friend" that had been living with me decided she didn't want to be friends with me. She called me… a loser along with a _lot_ of things I really don't want to repeat, which caused my depression and self-loathing to increase as we'd been friends for 6 years and been through many things together. I've striven to be the best friend that I can be, and be as supportive as I can. However, there were times that I needed to vent my feelings (no matter how ridiculous they are or how strange they sound). Sometimes even _I_ don't know why I feel the things that I do, which I clearly state the best I am able, and I just want the person to listen. I was told that I'm hostile and I hold things against people and therefore they don't feel comfortable talking to me about them. Now, that is the person's prerogative mind you and I am in _no_ way trying to make the person feel like their opinion isn't important. I simply wish that my opinion was at least listened to, even if I didn't understand it myself that way I was able to get it off my chest and you know, work through it. The inability to do this has left me feeling like my opinion–and myself–rather invalid and unimportant and like a burden.

Third of all, I recently found out that I more than likely have an eating disorder. Learning this put a lot of things in perspective for me, and I'm currently trying to come to terms with it, work through it, and beat it.

There are a few other factors that accounted for my absence. Maybe in time, I'll have the heart or desire to type them all out. I didn't forget about the fanfictions nor the people that are reading them, in fact I thought about it all every single day, but due to everything I haven't felt good enough to come to you all with a new chapter, and… I'm honestly still not sure about it, but I'm going to try my hardest. Please keep in mind that I am not telling you all this to request pity or anything else of that nature.

Thank you all for reading and hopefully staying by my side,

-Mikuxmew85

* * *

With an aggravated exhale from his nasal cavity, Sans tugged at the striped tie around his neck. His ivory dome felt like it was about to crack right down the middle and the chilled air engulfing him only increased his volatile mood. For the passed three and a half hours, he had been at the high school for an interview for a teacher's position. Normally, Sans was one to laze around and slack off whenever he could; a monster with no initiative or direction in life. For a while, he had been alright with that. The thoughts of judgmental monsters in the Underground hadn't bothered him-after all _he_ was the Judge. He had done his part partaking in various jobs to raise Papyrus to his fullest potential and providing his baby brother with anything he wanted. Now, however, things were different.

When Sans had checked the mail box that morning, a red envelope stuck out among all the white of his constant junk mail. A bill that was passed due was mostly yellow and he hardly got those. Sans liked to pay the bills on time to ensure Papyrus' continued happiness and carefree future. If Sans had any blood in his body, it would've froze at what was inside the menacingly red envelope. It was a notice from City Hall showing the increase of all bills in his home. Making sure to hide the news from his brother, he had calculated the price with the provided percentage. It was more than six months' worth of the previous bill cost. The more he had stared at the paper, the more distressed he had gotten. Without a second thought, he headed to Grillby's. He would have to vent to someone.

"you alright, campfire?" Sans had asked, taking a seat in his usual spot. Glancing upwards, the bar's sprinkler system seemed to be straining under the heat of Grillbs' head. "what's got you flaming?" His friend seemed to be bordering on rivaling the eternal flames of Hell's heat not even acknowledging Sans' pun. Absentmindedly wiping the sweat from his skull, he waited for Grillby's answer. The flame monster didn't speak but stopped shining the glass and tossed something on the bar. It was the same red envelope that he had gotten which contained the same letter. The percentages were higher on Grillby's notice than his own.

"Ridiculous."

"i agree." Sans had looked at the paper again like the contents were going to change. "…can ya afford it?"

"Barely. With the business I have now." Sans turned around in his stool. The jovial mood in the bar was dimmed down to a few smiles and even fewer laughs.

"that shouldn't be too—" Sans cut off noticing red envelopes with their accompanying letters gently dotting the booths and tables. If what Grillbs had said was true, business would decrease and so would his profit. If that happened… Grillby would not only lose his business, but also his home.

"Look." Another paper was tossed onto the bar, but this time it was a newspaper.

"what are you doing? you'll need this." Sans said and slid the paper back to him only to have it pushed back in his direction with the towel he was using for the glass.

"Right now, you'll need it more than I will."

Sans hadn't wanted to argue, so he opened the newspaper and scanned the ads. The school had been hiring for a teacher. A _science_ teacher. Sans slammed his hands down on the bar and he stood up. He smiled at his friend and turned, snapping his fingers and disappearing back to his home. He had gotten ready as fast as possible, dusting off the only "formal" sort of outfit he owned. It had felt like the outfit had been dipped and soaked in starch. With another nasal cavity exhale, he checked himself in the mirror. It wasn't that he looked _bad_ per se, but it was obvious he was uncomfortable. Determination had set in, and he headed towards the door. Just as he opened it, he was stunned to see Fall standing there with her fist in the air.

"Sans, hey…"

"fall? hey… what are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see if you—" She cleared her throat and Sans noticed the crimson that dusted her cheeks. "You're… not wearing your usual outfit."

"yeah… i'm going to an interview at the school… so i decided to ya know, not dress like me." Sans commented, trying probably the tenth time with the same futile result at tying the striped tie. His sockets turned back to Fall who had gripped the tie with her dainty hands, a soft giggle leaving her just as soft lips.

 _calm down._

"Here, let me get that for you." With precision, like she had done it a million times before, the tie was in its correct position. "You look good… You need to wear this more often."

"maybe for you, i will."

"Let me know how it goes." Fall said and kissed his cheekbone before heading back out, whatever she had wanted to say he supposed could wait. When he had arrived at the school, he had to wipe more sweat from his white dome, nervousness seeping into every bone in his skeleton. There weren't many things that could make Sans nervous, but the idea of being in front of numerous students every day—human and monsters—was one of them.

Sans looked back up at the sky wiping his hands down his face. His credentials had guaranteed his position along with his knowledge of the subject and many of its various branches. For a moment, thoughts of an empty mail box permeated his thoughts. He would be able to do something he hadn't been able to do in the Underground. No junk mail would be present, no _anything_. There weren't even that many people there to be interviewed, but they seemed to be taking their sweet time. When it was his turn, he had barely sat down when the tall human looked peeked at him from the top of his glasses. The human sat down the paper displaying his name, age, and credentials resting his chin on his folded hands.

"What makes you think you're qualified for this position?"

"science is a very difficult subject for most students to learn. it would be beneficial for the students as well as the school to get someone who could adapt many different styles to accommodate the students."

"Hmph."

"i've been around for a long time… that should be even better for the students. i can give perspective and examples that the textbooks don't have."

The human male exhaled deeply from his diaphragm and leaned back in his faux leather chair. The pompous air emanating from him was almost as overwhelmingly putrid as the odor coming from his chair. The corner of his lip turned up into a small smile.

 _condescending asshole._

"And _you_ think you can do what you're preaching?"

"if i couldn't, i—"

"Someone who couldn't escape an Underground prison without the help of a group of murdered children—plus one—thinks they have the knowledge and the _right_ to teach the youth of Ebott City?"

"…!"

"I have a hard enough time dealing with the parents who—rightfully—don't want their parents taught by the man who murdered children barely over ten years ago."

"her name is toriel. and she was always against what was happening… she's a good woman and an even better teacher."

"Regardless, I don't need another one of _you_ causing problems. Leave." The man said and stood up, tucking the papers under his arm and tossing Sans' in the garbage before ushering the skeleton out and leaving him to his own thoughts, sauntering triumphantly down the hall to his destination.

Sans had finally managed to pull the tie undone and let it hang around his neck. The more he tried to forget the happenings or earlier in the day, the more they pushed to the forefront of his mind. It had been almost ten years since he had been blatantly discriminated against. It was a common and logical thing when they first escaped. Of course, it would've been petrifying to have a plethora of monsters roam into your city as you were consuming your bran flakes in the morning. People and monsters had learned though over the years. Monsters weren't anything to fear, they just wanted to be treated like everyone else. Just to walk and enjoy the air, to look at the sun and the stars like everyone else. Not all people were like the humans of old and many wanted to learn and even research the culture of the monsters—their jobs, ways of life, hierarchy, and just general living in the Underground. It seemed hate was a universal and constant thing among humans. His sockets turned to the sky, the sun beating down on his bones. Anger pulsed through him along with pure embarrassment. He was willing to teach kids something that a human teacher couldn't give them, and he was just shot down… for being a monster. He folded his hands on top of his cranium, trying to blink away the impending tears.

"Sans?" The skeleton turned to the owner of the voice. It was a monster that he had seen frequenting Grillby's. "What are you doing here?"

"… nothing. what are you doing here?"

"Oh uh, waiting."

"…? waiting? you don't have kids."

"No, this is where the end of the line is."

Sans tilted his head to look passed the monster, his sockets widening. A group was gathered outside of City Hall. Some had their arms folded, others were tapping their feet in aggravation. Currently, this was the largest group he had seen outside of City Hall since they arrived. However, this was different. Back then, everyone was nervous and anxious. He remembered standing next to Papyrus who had been bouncing on his heels in anticipation, a bright smile on his face. For hours, he had been telling Sans about the many things he wanted to do on the surface. How he wanted to grow hair just so he could feel the wind through it as he drove. Papyrus wanted to own a restaurant to "share his culinary prowess with the humans". Thankfully, owning a restaurant took a lot of hoops to jump through on the Surface. He didn't know how things would be for monsters if Humans had gotten food poisoning from his brother's… culinary arts. Sans continued to eye the growing group.

"BROTHER!"

"oh. hey paps, what's up?" Sans said, looking from the group that had lost all formation and was swarming the entrance and the surrounding stairs.

"WHAT IS THIS?!" Papyrus thrust something to him. His sockets widened when he saw the red envelope in his hand. "I TOLD YOU NOT TO LEAVE YOUR MAIL LAYING ABOUT BROTHER!"

"r-right… sorry about that paps." Sans said, quickly stuffing the demonic red reminder in his pocket.

"BROTHER! WHAT DOES 'FAILURE TO COMPLY WILL RESULT IN IMMEDIATE EVICTION' MEAN?"

 _this can't be happening…_

"It means you'll be kick—" Sans' iris flickered a bright blue, wordlessly threatening the monster to become silent before things turned… ugly.

"WELL?"

"it's nothing you need to worry about paps…" Sans assured, making sure to smile for his brother. "i'll take care of it."

"ARE YOU SURE? I CAN HELP BROTHER!" Papyrus said, eyeing the growing group in front of City Hall with furrowed brows.

"no, it's fine. just go on home and get dinner ready…"

"ALRIGHT SANS! IF YOU INSIST!" Papyrus said and turned to walk away. "BY THE WAY, YOU LOOK LIKE YOU'RE GOING TO THOSE 'PARENT-TEACHER CONFERENCES'."

"i went to see about becoming a science teacher." If he had've gotten the job, Papyrus would've found out about it anyway, might as well let Papyrus in on it.

"YOU DID?! VERY GOOD! I KNEW YOU WERE—"

"they already hired someone else." Sans lied.

"WHAT?!"

"i guess you could say i wasn't really… _suited_ for the job."

"…"

"…"

"I'M GOING HOME!" Papyrus exclaimed.

"you're smiling."

"I KNOW, AND I HATE IT!" Papyrus stomped away eliciting a sigh of relief from Sans.

"You're still trying to protect Papyrus?" The monster that had been watching the whole scene asked.

"… of course."

"You know… you can't keep him innocent forever."

"… i can sure try." Sans said and rolled up the sleeves of the shirt he was wearing. "and i'll keep trying until the day i die."

"Well, you're a boat load of joy." Sans just shrugged his shoulders. "Oh! About that letter."

"ya mean this one?" The envelope was pulled out and thrust at the other monster.

"Yeah…"

"what about it?"

Without another word, a matching envelope and letter was thrust in front of him. Word for word—excluding the recipient name—matched his. Upon further inspection of the continuously growing group, it had become a red sea. Each standing citizen had the same red envelope in their hands, fins, tales, and the like. Tilting his head further to gain more sight into the group, he saw his friends standing among the others. He clasped the monster on the shoulder, a wordless sign of his departure to squish and contort his way through the spaces between the citizens. Someone behind him collided with his back, sending him bashing against a smooth, but cold surface.

"Watch where you're—Oh! Hello, Dearie~" Muffet's sing song voice relaxed his growing worry.

"hey… ya here because of this?" Sans asked, shining his current badge of shame.

"Yes Dearie~! We all are!"

 _thought so…_

A simple sound of a door opening echoed, bouncing against the sound barrier to emphasize the oncoming distress. The already small space surrounding each one in the group grew smaller to the point of asphyxiation. His bones rattled against the surrounding members who's voices rose with each step sounding from the top of the stairs. Much to his displeasure, he was stuck here between everyone else like the ball of a pinball machine. Teleporting was out of the question since he would harm anyone around him that wasn't him or the people coming with. Trying to peek through the next to zilch spaces reaped nothing but more anger and confusion. He looked over at Muffet who had a spider crawling on top of her head to survey the surrounding area. It wasn't his _own_ sockets, but it was better than nothing.

"Oh~ Is that so?" Muffet murmured, listening to what the spider atop her head had to say. "There are four humans up there, each blocking an entrance to City Hall. W-Wait, what? Are you sure Dearie~?" Sans didn't have time to ask what had happened.

"Hey! Hey! Quiet down!" One of the humans yelled, the yelling of the crowd, slowing down to a soft murmur among each other hypothesizing what they were going to say. "We're going to need you to form a line! Surely all of you can manage _that_ at least!" The loud yelling erupted among the group again, bumping everyone in the center around once more. What was _with_ these humans today?

"Please! Calm down!" This voice was different than the first one who had spoken. A voice he knew _all_ too well. It was the voice of his once favorite human, of his charge, of his best friend…

 _Frisk._

"All of your questions and concerns will be answered, but you need to form a line, so we can take care of each and every one of you in an orderly manner." Her voice was commanding and just like she was a goddess, she was devoutly heeded, each person moving to create a painfully long line. Sans had been pushed out of the way in the new formation, knocking him out of the line and onto the concrete. He groaned and pushed himself off the ground. He grunted, a low sound emitting from a depth he didn't know existed inside of his sternum. The human turned and looked at him just as magic surged through him flashing his iris a blue gold. She seemed scared and for all intents and purposes… she _should_ be. His phalanges twitched and his eye scorched with the hatred of a thousand suns. He was one step, one false move away from ridding this whole place of every human here— _including_ her. The others still heeded her words, but he knew better. She was just like all the other humans on the Surface. They cared about only themselves, it didn't matter that two loving monsters had _raised_ her… she still cared for her own kind more than family.

"Are you alright, Dearie?" Muffet asked, relinquishing her place in the line extending one of her many arms to help the enraged skeleton off the concrete.

"… i need to leave." Sans said. There was no telling what he might do if he stayed. He was the Judge… it didn't matter where—Surface or Underground—he still had his title… He needed to leave before it was too late, and he used it, condemning the name of all monsters and making them seem exactly how the humans saw them.

"Are you sure, Dearie~?" Muffet asked.

Sans grunted, holding onto his arm. Sometimes he forgot he was just bones and had no cushioning when he was pushed down. When he peeked up again at the humans standing at the top of the stairs, his rage only increased when one of the humans pushed a monster away from getting too close, almost like the human was disgusted with the monster. Lead weighed his soul colliding it against his ribcage. Frisk hadn't defended the monster. She didn't even spare another glance.

"positive." Sans murmured, his hand twitching _begging_ for his inner rage to be released. The little sliver that kept him from unleashing his fully fury was ironically how strong he was. One blast would be enough to obliterate everything; humans _and_ monsters. If anything like that were to happen, the remaining humans would no doubt confine him and imprison him—if they didn't just execute him. He couldn't do that to his friends, to Fall, to _Papyrus_. His little brother being alone in the world was a fate worse than death. Granted, Sans knew Paps would have all his friends to keep him company and make him smile, but nothing would be able to replace him in his brother's mind and soul.

"What did you say?" Sans heard one of the humans yell, pushing a monster into the line, staggering him onto the hard concrete below. The uproar caused by the human's deed echoed against the sky with the monsters breaking out of their pre-organized line to surround the stairs and the humans.

"Please, stop!" Sans heard Frisk yell, trying to push a monster and a human apart. If the monster got a hold of the human, the anger enough would be sufficient to rip him to shreds. Sans noticed that she was having a hard time keeping the two at bay. Taking advantage of the predicament, some of the monsters took to the stairs to reach the humans, demanding the reason for the increase of bills and their taxes. Scanning the crowd, Sans noticed that everyone who had the notice in the red envelope had been monsters. The only humans who had one were reading a notice owned by another. The disagreements had turned to shouts, more humans taking to the scene in front of City Hall, trying to disband—or fuel—the dispute—if it could even be called such a tame term anymore. Cries of 'what did we do to you?', 'what is the meaning of this?', 'how are we supposed to pay this?', 'this isn't equality!' among many others filled the air. As much as Sans wanted to get the hell out of dodge, he was glued to his spot along Muffet's side. He couldn't join in or walk away.

"Get back!"

"We have families too you know!"

"I said _get back_!"

"What are we supposed to do if we can't feed our children!?"

"Are you deaf?!"

"Please! Just give me an answer!"

All commotion stopped in an instant, almost like it had never happened in the first place. Neither human nor monster moved, but they had all seen it. A monster collapsed in front of a human, gripping onto its clothes as a desperate attempt to plead for answers. As she fell, the human revealed a gun, shaking in his grip. Static filled the air, the sound barrier pushing against the penetrating sound the metal contraption had made. The woman monster that lay on the ground coughed, grasping for something in the air that only she could see before her face met the concrete followed by Frisk's loud scream. She had covered her mouth in horror, collapsing next to a pile of dust. The human dropped the gun and backed towards the glass walls of City Hall.

"I-I didn't mean to…" He defended, but the damage had already been done. The man barely opened his mouth for another excuse when a group of monsters attacked. Sans watched with widening sockets when claws met the paper-thin skin of a human and sliced it open. Screams of pain and despair fought against each other. The sounds only caused more humans to arrive on the scene, flashes of blue and red alternating against the scales, skin, and other various human and monster parts. Boots trampled the ground from the road towards the altercation. A small group infiltrated the fight, pulling back the monster who had blood coating his claws up to his paws, scattering the woman's dust to the wind with each step they took on the white pile.

"Let me go!" The monster yelled, kicking and bucking against the police officers who grabbed onto each limb to subdue him. "My wife!" He yelled, pulling against the force of the cops to go back at the City Hall guard who was slumped against the wall. "You killed my wife, you bastard!" Tears matted the fur around his eyes and the more he pulled against the force of the police, the more he cried, unable to reach the human who had taken the life of his beloved mate. "Rebekah!" He growled, a deep soulful sob that could tear one's soul apart just by hearing it. "Rebekah!" The lion monster mourned, abandoning the guard and trying to reach the scattered dust that was once his wife which was now splayed across the steps and on the bottom of the officer's shoes. Out of the corner of his sockets, Sans saw two of Muffet's hands covering her mouth while two more were latched in her hair no doubt trying to grasp onto some sense of reality, of _sanity_. While Sans had lost himself amid the small war raging, he hadn't noticed the fifteen or so cops that had surrounded City Hall. His distraction had caused him to miss the exact moment an officer had tazed Rebekah's husband. Now he lay foaming at the mouth, convulsing on the ground while being handcuffed. Utter chaos exploded when officers arrived with large, body length shields to push the monsters away, even further desecrating Rebekah's resting place—while two more carried out the man who had killed her towards an ambulance.

"No!"

"Stop!"

"Please don't—"

"I don't want to die!"

Various strings of pleas melded together amid the fighting. Choking from numerous sources of monsters being cruelly tazed by one of more guns held by authority figures penetrated Sans' cranium. He was sure that sound would be engrained in his mind for the rest of his long, _long_ life. The loud click of handcuffs only added to the confusion surrounding everyone. The deduction that all Ebott City's police force was here only rang truer with every new officer he saw.

"Look!" Muffet called, pointing passed him. His mouth dropped in horror seeing all his friends running towards him and Muffet. Trailing behind… was Papyrus. "No! Run!" She screamed, waving her arms to warn them which only interested those surrounding the scene. They all turned in one cohesive unit to the others, signaling a few to chase after. Papyrus didn't run and stood at the forefront, holding his arms wide open.

"WHY ARE YOU DOING THESE BAD THINGS?" He asked.

"Back away slowly. Get down on the ground and put your hands behind your head!" One ordered.

"I KNOW YOU DON'T MEAN TO DO THIS, THAT YOU'RE JUST SCARED."

"I said, get down!"

Already, flashbacks of Rebekah's last words filled his skull. He darted towards them, only to have Muffet hold onto his arm.  
"Sans, don't!" She warned.

"let go!" Sans yelled, tearing his arm from her deceivingly strong grip.

"IT'S OKAY! I STILL BELIEVE IN YOU! ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS PUT THAT DOWN, AND IT'LL BE OKAY! I KNOW YOU CAN STILL DO GOOD THINGS!"

"Papyrus! We have to go, NOW!" Undyne had yelled, grabbing onto his arm and pulling him. "You better get out of this, you hear me? Or I'll kick your ass!"

With the click of a loaded gun, Sans didn't think twice and commanded his five Gaster Blasters he summoned from the Void to attack the officers who threatened his friends and his brother his iris an eerily beautiful blue all the while.  
"Sans!" A yell from near the door of City Hall distracted him momentarily, causing him to miss and hit a cluster of trees in the distance. Even though he had missed his target, it was enough to turn the attention back to him as he was more of a threat.

"Papyrus let's go!" Undyne yelled and Sans watched in his peripheral vision his friends running further away, becoming small dots the further away they got.

"Put your hands up!" They ordered to which Sans complied.

"You too, Spider Lady!" Muffet put two of her hands up. "All of them! Don't be a cocky bitch!" Squinting her many eyes, she raised the rest of her hands slowly above her head.

This was no contest. Between Muffet and him, they would be able to kill every single cop around here and every guard at City Hall no problem. They could also escape. With Sans' teleporting ability, he could get him and Muffet out of here in a flash. If they did that, they would go after his friends, after _Papyrus._ He had already been terrified enough that he was going to lose his brother, he didn't want to play with fire again.

"let her go. she didn't do anything." Sans said, jerking his chin towards Muffet. If he could get all his friends out of here, that'd be great. Just like the rest of this whole situation, nothing seemed to be going their way.

"Sorry Pal, but we're not going to risk you little spider friend here pulling a fast one on us."

"Cuff 'em."

Two police officers; rookies by the look of them went behind Sans and Muffet while the others kept their sights trained frighteningly precise on where their souls were in the body. He grunted when his arms were jerked back behind him and the cuffs were placed on his wrists, having to be on the smallest setting so he didn't slip out of them. The other seemed confused on how they were going to get Muffet cuffed. Even with two pairs, since one gave the rookie another, Muffet still had a couple arms available. The officer jammed multiple wrists into one set of cuffs.

"Hey!" She screamed, jerking against him. "That hurts! Ow!"

"Deal with it!"

The two rookies turned them around pushing them towards a cop car while others were piled into multiple police transport vehicles. From this angle, he was able to get a view of the entrance. Frisk was standing there fists full of hair atop her head. Her blue eyes were darting around the makeshift battlefield and from his view, he could see she was on the verge of hyperventilating. Surrounding her were bodies of wounded humans and monsters alike. A couple more piles of dust littered the ground and others were being "escorted" away, like cattle… like _monsters_. Sans stopped when Frisk turned and looked at them. Her eyes widened, and she shook her head repeatedly.

"Keep walking!" One yelled, punching him in the spine. Sans groaned in pain and exhaled through his nasal cavity, continuing his steps.

"Sans! Muffet!" Sans watched her try to maneuver her way around the officers and surrounding maimed bodies but was stopped by another. "Jason? What are you doing?" She yelled, trying to tug herself free.

"Don't get involved."

"Let me go!"

"You heard what I said!"

"And you heard what _I_ said!"

Sans and Muffet exchanged a glance when Jason tugged on Frisk's wrist again, Sans unconsciously taking a step towards Jason and pulling on his bindings. Just as Sans saw Jason pull at Frisk's wrist again to drag her away and pull her close, he felt an extreme pain against his skull and collapsed to the concrete below with a loud grunt. A voice faded into the distance, becoming quieter with every passing second the black curtain of oblivion clouded more of his vision.

"Sans! Sans!"

* * *

I hope that it was at least worth some of the wait and you weren't severely disappointed with this chapter. I'll try harder. Let me know what you think and have a good day/night.

-Mikuxmew85


	9. Broken

This is actually an earlier chapter that I added after the others and realized I forgot it when something didn't add up. So I hope you'll forgive me for that as I'm sure a lot of things didn't make sense.

* * *

When next Sans opened his sockets, he was met with spotted gray. The world was swimming around him making him nauseous. He hadn't even been aware that he had the _ability_ to be nauseous. Before he even began to sort out where he was at, and what was causing the sounds riding on the waves of his vertigo, he had to right himself first. He tried to concentrate on one thing to center his world and stop his rising nausea and the raw, excruciating pain on the back of his cranium—it was a trick that Frisk had told him when they were still on good terms. He had seen her sick many times and she would always do this trick to calm her pain and nausea. At first, he tried the gray above him, the brown spotting seeming to engulf the gray bit by bit. He closed his sockets and tried to focus on the cold beneath his bones. He inhaled in through his nasal cavity and exhaled from his open mouth, trying to disregard the clamors around him which were increasing in volume. Within moments, Sans' nausea decreased enough to where he could move without feeling like he was going to vomit.

"Oh!" Sans heard a voice and slowly sat up and held the side of his cranium. His tired sockets scanned the scene, becoming keenly aware of his surroundings; the thick, black iron bars separating him from the commotion outside as well as the hand on his shoulder. "Sans! Are you alright?"

Sans turned his attention from the tumult and grunted seeing Frisk sitting next to him. The concern in her deep blue eyes tugged at the soul deep within his chest, much to his chagrin. Why was she here now? Why was she worried about him? Frisk didn't worry about him—or any other monster—with the outbreak at City Hall. This had to be a hoax. No way would she have the gall to show herself and feign worry over the situation. As much as he wanted to be mad at her, to be _furious_ , his bones relaxed.

"Sans?" Frisk shook him. "Sans? Are you okay? Can you hear me?"

Sans held onto his cranium and blinked, lifting the veil of fog and disorientation that was gripping onto his consciousness. He sat up, every memory flooding back all at once from the mental crumbling dam. The bars were a border; from him and freedom. From the corner of a small wall, jutting out to separate the holding cells from booking. Flashes of light illuminated the other cells around him, along with his own. He turned around and wasn't met with the blue eyes that were as deep as the ocean itself, but numerous black eyes.

"muffet?" Sans asked, his voice low and still somewhat confused.

"Oh! Good Dearie~" Muffet said. "You're back with us… I was so worried. You've been out for _hours_."

Sans grunted in acknowledgment. It hadn't been Frisk. It had been Muffet. He couldn't help but wonder why his chest hurt when he saw the illusion of Frisk dissolve into Muffet. Perhaps it was the realization that she really _didn't_ care for him or for the monsters that she claimed were her friends. Frisk hadn't stopped the humans from killing that monster or stopped the ones who almost killed his brother. The only defense she had given was when she tried to stop him from ridding the world of the people that would've been his brother's murderers.

"hours?" Sans echoed.

"Hours."

Sans rubbed his temples again. If he had the physiological capacity to bruise, that human would've done a number on his head. The occasional flash of a taken photo out of the corner of his sockets did nothing to improve morale in his cell. Muffet had taken a seat on the bench he was previously occupying. The occasional tick of the ceiling fan only made him keenly aware of how much time was passing while he sit in the cell. Thankfully, while he scanned the others he saw none of his friends—or his brother. Suffice it to say, that was a load off his shoulders.

"Sans Snowdin?" A gruff voice came from the entrance of his cell. A tall man wearing a light blue-gray uniform marking him a part of Ebott's police force stood awaiting his acknowledgment. The man—most likely around mid-50's in human years—waited partly between lazily and agitated when Sans didn't address him right away. Even behind the heavily tinted glasses the man wore, his distaste—perhaps even bordering on unbridled hatred—for monsters was evident. _Great._

"maybe." Sans said, raising a brow bone. The toothpick the male twirled in his mouth now strained under the force of his clenching jaw. His upper lip twitched making his grayed mustache do a small dance in response. He couldn't help but find it funny. If he wasn't trapped, he may have let his humor show. "who are you to ask for my name?" A warning jab nestled in between his vertebrae came from behind, but Sans did little to recognize Muffet's worry. Despite what would border on blatant disrespect of an obvious authority figure, the male merely smirked. To say it was… unnerving would be an understatement.

"I'm the one presiding over your case while you're here in our… _lovely_ and _welcoming_ establishment."

Sans scoffed and clicked his tongue. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his slacks and shook his head, closing his sockets. Clearly, this human clearly had an ego rivaling Mettaton's on a good hair day.

"Brother of… Papyrus Snowdin, is that right?"

Sans' sockets flew open, his eyes hollow, his eyes glowing with a new-found fury. This human had no idea who he was fucking with. No idea at _all._ He moved to the bars so fast, a breeze blew the officer's clothes and receding hair. The man twirled the toothpick in his mouth again, glancing down at an open file.

"Says here he's your only family. How cute."

"leave my brother out of this you son of a—" Sans flinched from pain when he grabbed the bars to stick his head out, wanting to get as close to this… this _monster_ as possible. Possibly rip him limb from limb at the insinuation of what he could do to his brother. He let go of the now glowing bars and clenched his fist, lifting his hand up, almost waving him dismissively. Sans' sockets widened when nothing happened.

"Nice try monster." The human said with a smug smirk, tapping the bars with his knuckles. "These bars right here are made to keep you _creatures_ from hurting any of us innocent humans."

"innocent my—" Sans was cut off by another electric shock from gripping onto the bars. He grunted snapping his fingers, but he remained in the same spot he had been before. He flung his hand to the side, up, down, but nothing happened. The human stood and watched, his glasses shining and amusement flickering behind them. Sans gripped onto the bars again and grunted from the electric shock that ran through his bones. He didn't let go and pulled at them, tried to pry them apart. Anything to get to the creature in front of him.

"Sans! Stop!" Muffet yelled. Much to her chagrin, however, Sans continued to try and rip the bars apart ignoring the obvious pain he was inflicting upon himself.

By the end of Sans' tirade, he was huffing with sweat pricking on his skull. He lifted his hand up and it fell back to his side. His head fell which only entertained the officer.

"Ready to cooperate now?" The man asked. Sans said nothing and huffed, trying to bring his breathing back to normal. "Put your wrists through the bars." Defeated, he did as the officer asked. Cold metal was clasped onto his wrists and the door was opened. The exit was in sight, but he had no deceptions. There was no way that the exit wasn't blockaded somehow. He had no illusions about attempting to use his magic outside of his cell. He recognized the strange material wrapped around his wrist and the pain that gripped onto his bones. Although weaker than the bars themselves, the cuffs around his wrist were infused with the same material as the bars—preventing magical use. The metal around his wrists, however, was weaker. He could feel the magic crackling in his bones, but it was weak. With the amount of magical energy allowed back into his body, there was no way he would be able to take on the man urging him forward—angrily—with his baton let alone all the corrupt humans here.

Sans was lined up against a wall that measured his height. The faces of the monsters he passed and the ones behind him in line fell, seeing the defeated and hollow look in Sans' sockets. No matter what happened, now matter how grim things had looked Sans never stopped smiling; he was the reason for a lot of monsters smiling and laughing in both the Underground and on the Surface. To see his face without its perpetual smile was the benediction to their defeat and hopelessness. Sans faced forward, his face conquered and defenseless. A booking card was thrust in front of him, knocking into his abdomen. He grunted from pain and took the card. Using what little magic he had, he levitated the card for the booking department to document everything he possessed. With each flash of the bulb, he turned a new angle to be documented further. The man that had dragged Sans from his cell pulled him by the chain between the cuffs and opened a pad of ink, taking the outline of Sans' fingers and the print of the porous fibers of his bones on a card from each hand.

"Ain't so tough now are ya, monster?"

". . ." Sans didn't answer him. The cuffs and the little use of magic he had used completely left him spent.

"Didn't think so."

Without another word, Sans was thrown back into his cell, falling onto the floor. He exhaled and pushed himself off the concrete floor with Muffet's help. The spider monster had seen everything by the look on her face. His hollow eyes turned to his friend who frowned, her eyes becoming glassy. Sans staggered over to the bench and plopped down. The monsters in surrounding cells were whispering among themselves and their nearby cell mates. He caught a word here and there; words of "doomed", "worry", "Sans", and "humans" floated through the air. Sans felt the same, they _were_ doomed. These humans were unlike any _monster_ he had seen. What kind of person would take advantage of—and physically hurt—someone who was unable to fight back. Cowards. He rested his elbows on his knees, burying his face in his hands. They were genuinely trapped… it was like the Underground all over again. The cuffs and bars on their cells were just as bad—if not worse—than the Barrier that kept them trapped underground.

"Sans!"

The skeleton snapped his head up, recognizing the voice. Standing in front of his cell with her dainty hands wrapped around the bars, Fall watched him with tears in her blue eyes. Her grip tightened around the bars. He couldn't help but feel touched when she stood on her tiptoes and stuck her head between the bars; almost like she was trying to squeeze into the cell. Sans stood up and walked over to where Fall was waiting anxiously for him.

"fall."

"Sans! Oh my god!" Fall exclaimed, running her eyes over every inch of his face and body. "You… Are you alright?"

". . . yeah." Sans said, quirking a small smile. Fall looked like she was about to become hysterical and like she didn't believe him in the least bit. Truth be told, he wouldn't believe himself either. One dainty hand reached between the bars and reached for his own. Her fingers stretched, desperately seeking some sort of comfort; a touch, a smile, anything. "fall." His sockets fell to the space between them separated by the prison bars. He noted how Fall was sniffling and how her breathing was becoming more erratic.

"Y-Yes?"

"i don't want you to see this. leave."

"B-But Sans—"

"fall. please."

Fall didn't respond to his pleas. Sans didn't look up until he heard the large, barred metal door scrapping against the concrete floor, marking her exit. He looked up just quick enough to see Fall's brown hair trailing behind when she turned the corner to leave. Hanging his head, the quickly becoming familiar feeling of defeat creeped up and began to devour him. Muffet came up behind him and put a couple hands on his shoulders. He knew that Muffet was trying to help, and he shouldn't be worrying her. After all, she was in the same situation that he was. Thankfully, he didn't have to worry too much about Papyrus. Undyne could take any human in battle and Mettaton would be able to save them if something happened to her. He could only imagine how Papyrus was feeling without his brother there. He pictured their home, how just a couple of days ago everything had been fine. Papyrus was making them spaghetti and trying to convince Sans to let him attempt garlic bread again. He was sitting on his jingling couch and at night time, he read to Papyrus to help him get to sleep… Who was going to read to Papyrus tonight?

It wasn't apparent how long he had been in the cell with Muffet. In the concrete prison, there were no windows. There was just brick upon off-white painted bricks surrounding them. Monsters were pacing back and forth in their respective cells. Others were sleeping, and a few monsters were crying in the corner. Sans was one of the few that were sitting and staring into space. He sighed and leaned his head against the cold brick wall, lightly banging it. This place was boredom and depression reincarnate. He found himself counting the ticking of the fan overhead or the occasional flickering of the faulty light above him. He wondered how long they were going to remain in here, or if this place was permanent. When Muffet had asked earlier, an officer had thrown a balled-up piece of paper at her. Real mature. Without his consent, his thoughts trailed to Frisk. How was she doing? Did she care that almost all her friends were in jail? He tried to hold out hope that she was worried about them. Just before he was knocked out by the officer in front of City Hall, he had seen Frisk on the brink of losing it. Was it from the humans that had been attacked, or from the monsters?

A small smile—pained, broken, and lost—came to his face, remembering when things were simpler. The first few months after they arrived on the Surface. Frisk would come over to the house. She would crawl onto the couch and watch TV with Sans and Papyrus. Toriel would tell Frisk that she needed to stop eating so much spaghetti, and she would lecture Papyrus on that the little girl needed more vegetables. If Frisk would stay the night—like she normally did—she would fall asleep on the couch, usually in Sans' lap while she was watching a movie and he would eventually have to cover her up. Sans closed his sockets and exhaled. How did it come to this? How did they end up like this? Even though they had their spat, and she had smacked him in front of everyone, as much as they hated each other, he held the memories of those times—all those years ago—close to his soul.


	10. Proof

_Author's Note: I hope you like this chapter and continue to read. This is the second longest chapter I've written for any of my fanfictions and I personally like this chapter. I think it opens things in a new way that maybe you weren't expecting. Enjoy. Let me know what you think._

* * *

She had watched in horror, calling out to her once best friend when his bones collapsed to the ground. Determination and fear engulfed her body. It felt like slow motion when she ran to him, frantic to help. Had Jason not been there, perhaps she would've been able to reach him on time. A _thud_ of a closed door had never felt so… so _final_. The van skidded off and she sprinted after it at a speed that surprised even her leaving her boyfriend behind to yell after her.

"Stop!" She screamed at the top of her lungs. "I said stop!" Puffs of smog backfiring from the van reduced her to a choking mess while the rest was left to dissipate into the air above them. Barely visible through the cloud, monsters of varying species peeked out from the small, barred window. Nowhere among them did she see Sans or even Muffet. The prison on wheels taunted her, making her watch as it shrank into the distance. All too soon, she lost sight of the truck completely. The pounding of her shoes on the black road slowed and locked, begging for relief. Ignoring the sharp needles stabbing her lungs, tears pricked the corners of her blue eyes. The overwhelming need to vomit and scream rattled her system. "Sans…" Her knees buckled, and she collapsed on the street. All sounds surrounding her shrank to a sharp screech attached static in the background.

The inability to rescue her wrongfully taken friends pressed against her brain, demanding the issue be addressed. The screeching sirens of police cars surrounded the area, the riot continuing behind her yet so far away. Right now, there was no hope and no peace. Humans were wrongfully taking monsters to cars and vans, handcuffs of material unknown to her; painfully tightened around fins, paws, and hands. With shaking hands, screaming and aching legs, she went to an officer and grabbed onto his uniform. The officer had been stunned enough to stop the trek to his cruiser and turned to look at her.

"Please… let him go." She begged, tightening her grip on the fabric. The monster held in custody looked at her with a reaction she was unable to identify.

"Sorry ma'am." The officer said, shaking free of her grip. "Orders are orders."

"Orders?!" She yelled, gripping onto him again earning an agitated sigh in return. "From who?!"

"I'm afraid I can't divulge that information, Miss Dreemurr."

She pulled at his arm in a pitiful attempt to help the captured monster. To her, it didn't matter if she was imprisoned. All that mattered was the safety of her friends, family, and the monsters who had fought so hard and held onto hope so long to get to this point.  
"Please! I'm begging you!" Her soul-wrenching screams almost drowned out in the wake of fearful monsters and angry humans. "Please—" The ground was left beneath her feet and her hands were freed of the fabric. It took her brain a few seconds to realize what had happened, that she had been lifted off the ground. Fight or flight instinct kicked in making her struggle and try to pry the arms wrapped around her middle.

"Frisk!" Her captor yelled. She recognized that voice.

"J-Jason?" Frisk stammered, calming down slightly. Hyper aware that the officer was getting away, she struggled again. "Let me go! Let me go _now_!"

"Frisk! Stop!" He yelled. Frisk fell limp in his arms weakly pulling at them. The police cruiser left the scene. Jason had turned her away just in time for her to see another monster fall at the shock of a taser and another fall to the shot of a gun. Screams ripped from her chest, piercing the sky. On the ground, a paw covering the wound was Bonnie, the rabbit whom was famous in Ebott for her cinnamon bunnies. Tears covered her face, growing ever more hysterical when her friend fell onto the pavement face first. Frisk clawed at Jason's arms, ignoring his pained screams. Jason's grip tightened, putting her in a hold to where she was unable to move. He pulled her back and away from the scene not heeding Frisk's screams. She bashed her head against his chest and kicked her legs which only caused Jason to tighten his grip. With every passing second, the sirens died down and the screams—other than her own—settled. Frisk's struggles lightened against Jason's iron grip. Her eyelids grew heavy and the curtain of oblivion covered the scene.

Frisk opened her eyes and looked around. She blinked her eyes, glancing at the one window in the room. Between the crack of the curtain, she saw the multi colored array of sunset. She recognized the room as Jason's. She had only been here a couple of times since they started dating. The doorknob turned, and Frisk bristled. Jason walked in and she exhaled. When she stood, Frisk almost fell back onto the bed. Every muscle in her body was crying out in pain, her legs demanding her to sit back down.

"Are you alright?" Jason asked taking a step closer to Frisk. She held onto her head and looked up at him. He looked extremely uncomfortable and held out a cup to her. Hesitant, but undeniably thirsty, she took the cup. "Sorry…" He said and sighed. "You were hysterical… I didn't know how else to calm you down." Frisk looked down at the liquid in the cup and took a small sip. From all her screaming and crying, she was absolutely drained; body and soul.

"What happened to everyone?" This wasn't the time for pleasantries or apologies. With her senses returned, Frisk's previously doused out determination reignited. Jason didn't answer her and rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. Frisk raised an eyebrow at his hesitation. "Well?"

"… All of the monsters were taken to prison." Jason informed and fidgeted uncomfortably.

"… Bonnie?" Frisk asked, her voice softening. Jason had knocked her out before she had seen what happened to her friend.

"The rabbit? She was taken to a hospital… She's fine." Frisk's relief was palpable. There was some good news in all of this. She took another drink, trying to calm her twisted stomach.

"I have to go." Frisk said and put her now empty cup on the nightstand. She looked at Jason, but he didn't make a move to stop her. From all his protesting earlier of her getting involved Frisk was sure he would at least _attempt_ to stop her. "I have to help them somehow." Jason merely smiled and shoved his hands in his pockets, shrugging. Frisk returned the smile and left the room, going down the stairs.

Determination returning, she had one focus: save her friends. With Bonnie safe in a hospital, she was able to keep her goal in mind. Ignoring her body's protests, she jogged towards town. Although Jason's home wasn't too far from Ebott's center, the distance felt like forever. By the time she reached the large red, brick building with glass windows and doors, night had fallen. The road and town square were illuminated only the streetlights and the occasional internal light of a nearby building. Frisk slowed until she came to a stop in front of the building. Hard to believe that such a riot—bordering on an all-out massacre—had occurred merely hours ago. If it wasn't for the slight drops of blood dried on the concrete of the steps, and the slightly different color of the third step. Upon closer inspection, white dust was engrained in the concrete. Had it not been for these, she would've sworn it was all a dream. Not wanting to stare at the aftermath any longer, she jogged up to the door and went inside.

City Hall was slightly quieter than usual. It was no doubt due to the riot earlier. The inside was just as it always had been; shining marble tiles on the floor, textured tan walls, ceramic white orb ceiling lights, and glass doors. The trauma hadn't touched the inside, making it feel like a different world all together. Frisk headed up the steps near the back, passing by offices of various figures of the day to day running of Ebott City. Frisk grunted and looked at the steps; had these steps always looked so intimidating? With a deep inhale, she harnessed her fuel; her determination and climbed the sucupira steps one by one. The only wooden door in all of City Hall, her destination was in sight. When she arrived at the door, taking a look at the shining gold plate marked _Austin Tills: Mayor_. Part of her worried that Mayor Tills wouldn't be there. After all, who would want to stay at work with what happened today? Although, the mere thought of Mayor Tills being in his office was enough motivation to knock.

"Come in."

Frisk walked inside and closed the door behind her. Mayor Tills' office looked like the stereotypical type of a man in his position. A mahagony desk with a leather office chair; desk decorated with various trinkets—a framed picture of his family he liked to show off to everyone who would listen—two leather chairs in front of the desk for those who would visit. Behind him, a large bookcase encompassing the whole wall rested. Books of various subjects lined the shelves pressed together tightly, some of which she had borrowed and read over the years. Despite the clear position difference, Frisk always felt at home when she walked into the office.

"Miss Dreemurr." Mayor Tills smiled, setting his papers down. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Hello Sir," Frisk returned his smile. "could I talk to you for a moment?"

Mayor Tills gestured to one of the leather chairs, which Frisk practically fell into. The coolness of the leather wrapped around her, almost like giving her a hug. Mayor Tills was a nice man; graying hair with a receding hairline and thick glasses and a chevron mustache. His smile was always warm and fatherly. Even when he was disciplining someone, he would always keep his tone even and understanding; listening to all sides of the story before deciding on anything.

"This… is about the riot earlier, correct?"

"… yes." Frisk confirmed. It didn't take a genius to realize why the ambassador for the monsters to the humans would be visiting the mayor. Absentmindedly wiping the clammy sweat from her hairline, she exhaled. "I—"

"Are you alright?"

"Oh uh… yeah. Sorry sir. I just ran here… it's been a very trying day." Frisk said.

Mayor Tills turned around in his chair and fiddled with a small machine near his desk on the wall. He returned to his position and adjusted the coat of his suit.

"There. I hope this will help you a little, Miss Dreemurr."

"Thank you, Sir."

"But, as you said, you didn't come here to make small talk."

Frisk cleared her throat and nodded, crossing her legs ignoring the cracks her bones were yelling out.  
"Yes sir… As you said, it's concerning the riot earlier today." She said.

"I've read the report given to me by the police as I was away on a meeting." Mayor Tills stated. "However, I know Miss Dreemurr that this is not the full story, merely the human side."

"That's correct Sir. When pressed with a question, an officer shot a monster—a mother—and killed her. It _is_ true that her husband did maul the man who killed his wife…" Frisk took a moment to silently respect Rebekah's passing. "The monster that attacked the human, Rebekah's husband, was detained by police. However, the police continued to attack all the monsters outside. Many of the officers on duty, if not all of them, were called. Many monsters were wrongfully tazed and detained." Frisk watched Mayor Tills lean forward and create a steeple with his fingers which he placed to his lips; eyes focused on Frisk. "Among some of the wrongfully detained are my friends; Muffet Hill and… and Sans Snowdin." She blinked away her oncoming tears and struggled to stop her cracking voice. "Sans—uh Mr. Snowdin was also the victim, after being cuffed, of police brutality. Mr. Snowdin… _did_ attempt to harm Ebott officers. However, the officers in question were threatening his brother—"

"Papyrus Snowdin correct?"

"Yes Sir." Frisk nodded. "Papyrus along with a group of friends had come to see what was happening. Papyrus was talking to the officers, attempting to get them to stand down. He had his arms wide open and was speaking with no ill intentions."

Mayor Tills nodded. "I have had dealings with Papyrus Snowdin, namely him wanting to cook dinner for everyone at the office." He said. "The boy doesn't have a mean bone in his body."

Frisk smiled and closed her eyes. In hindsight, Papyrus was most likely older than Frisk and Mayor Tills' ages combined. In monster terms though, he was still rather young and had the mindset of a young child, but that was one of his many charms.  
"Papyrus is a good friend… and Sa—Mr. Snowdin protects his brother with everything he is. He attacked only in defense of his brother. Another of my friends, Bonnie Lyte, was shot by a police officer. Whether it was in a crossfire or just out of spite, I'm afraid I didn't see." Frisk leaned forward, "I came here, Sir, to ask you to release my friends—and all wrongfully accused and detained monsters—from jail."

Mayor Tills exhaled and leaned back in his chair, looking at the ceiling. He rolled his head around and rubbed the back of his neck. His eyes looked at the ceiling like he would find the answer in it. Frisk leaned forward in her own chair, like that would help him make decision in her favor. Her hopes faded when Mayor Tills close his eyes and rub the bridge of his nose.  
"I… I know that I'm asking a lot sir—"

"It's not that Miss Dreemurr." He assured, sitting upright again. "You no doubt tell the truth. Since you arrived in Ebott City along with your friends, you've been nothing but upstanding and honest."

"Thank you, Sir."

 _Please…_ Please _let them out._

"Unfortunately, I cannot grant you request."

"W-What? Wh—"

"It's not that I don't _want_ to, Miss Dreemurr." Seeing the look of confusion on Frisk's face, he continued. "I don't have the authority."

"Wait… What?" Frisk asked, furrowing her brows. "You're the _mayor_."

"Yes, but… your friends—and the rest of the monsters—have been processed by the law. Now it's out of my power. This issue would have to be discussed with Judge Davis."

Judge Davis. One of the people in the whole growing metropolis of Ebott that she couldn't stand. He was snarky, condescending, and beyond prejudiced. If this decision was left up purely to Judge Davis, her friends would end up rotting and spending the rest of their long, _long_ lives behind bars. The thought of her friends dying behind bars, having to watch generations of humans live and die while they stayed caged like animals churned her stomach. She ran her hand down her face and rested her elbows on her knees. This was honestly probably one of the _worst_ ways this could go.

"Judge Davis is not without reason, Miss Dreemurr." Mayor Tills smiled when Frisk raised an eyebrow.

"Are we talking about the same Judge Davis, Sir?" Her comment earned a laugh from the Mayor. His smile made Frisk a little confused, it was almost bordering on _sneaky_. Before this meeting, it was a term that she would've never associated with him.

"If he is presented with evidence to the monsters' overall innocence, he'll have no choice under the law to release them." Frisk brightened and then knit her brows again. Almost as if reading her mind, he continued. "If you can prove that Mr. Snowdin reacted in defense of his brother, it'll be justifiable action and will be released."

 _There's hope._

Frisk smiled though she felt weak. If she could just collect enough evidence to show the police's wrongdoing, she would be able to get all her friends out. She bit at her lip, trying to decide how she was going to collect evidence. If she collected evidence in the _wrong_ way, it wouldn't be admissible to her case. She wasn't a lawyer, but in her years as an ambassador, she had learned a few things. If she was unable to get the evidence by _legal_ means, she wouldn't be able to help her friends. What she did from here would determine what would happen to her friends. While Frisk was running through all her options in her head and trying to run through every angle while trying to keep herself awake and stop breaking out into a cold sweat and ignore her aching body, she watched as Mayor Tills fiddled with his keys. Confused, but intrigued, she couldn't help but watch. He took off a key from the large ring and "accidentally" dropped it on the floor near her. She took the silver key and furrowed her brows, staring at it and then looking back at him.

"You know, Miss Dreemurr, this is completely off topic, but I have suspicions that Jessica Alan is stealing money from Steven Vans. Since you're here, would you do me a favor since I have paperwork to do and check the cameras in the security office?" Mayor Tills smiled at her.

Frisk grasped the key in her hand tighter, her soul bursting with determination. There was only one shot at this. She _had_ to get it right; no room for error.  
"Thank you, Sir." She said before turning around quickly and heading back down the stairs, jogging down the stairs, tripping on the last one. She grunted and continued her goal spreading to coat every part of her brain until it was focused _solely_ on that.

The door to the security office was a well taken care of metal, shining slightly in the dim lighting on the first floor. Part of her was worried that she wouldn't be able to open it, like maybe Mayor Tills gave her the wrong key or just gave her one to toy with her. The click of the lock releasing was like gospel. Frisk exhaled and hung her head in relief for a moment before entering and closing the door, locking it behind her. Under a normal day, the office would be filled with at least two guards. However, with the ordeal today, Frisk could only assume that everyone in City Hall went to spend time with their families to ensure their safety. She took a seat in the plush chair, glancing at the monitors. Each was shockingly in color, depicting various places in City Hall. The hallways, a couple around the kitchen and the break room, and two on the second floor in the conference hall. She sighed and looked around. There weren't even any security cameras that were focused on the outside.

"It's over… isn't it?" Frisk asked aloud, leaning back in the plush chair which emitted a squeak in protest. She sighed and looked at the ceiling. The all too familiar feeling of oncoming tears breached the corners of her eyes. She had failed all the monsters in jail. She had failed her friends… She had failed…  
Frisk planted her head against the keyboard on the desk and frowned, squeezing her eyes shut.

 _Sans. I'm sorry._

" _Get back!"_

" _We have families too, you know!"_

" _I said_ get back _!"_

" _What are we supposed to do if we can't feed our children?!"_

" _Are you deaf?!"_

" _Please! Just give me an answer!"_

Frisk raised her head just in time to see Rebekah fall to the gunshot. This was it. Two of the cameras that had previously been focused on the inside now showed two different angles of the riot outside. Bile rose in her throat when she saw the group of humans stepping all over Rebekah's ashes, trying to deafen her ears to the scream of hers on the video. Frantically, she studied every single aspect of the confrontation turned riot. She watched the monsters scrambling around in a frenzy. Frisk's focus went from Rebekah's husband being detained—his muzzle and claws evidence of his guilt of attempted murder of the slumped over human—to Sans who stood near the back of the pack with Muffet. His sockets were wide as he surveyed the scene. From the other angle, she saw Sans' gaze lock on Rebekah's husband that was laying on the ground from being tazed.

"Wait… Hold on." Frisk said and took the nearby mouse and rewound the video to before the horde of police had arrived. She looked at the time and pressed play. Once more, she saw Rebekah's husband pulled away by the nearby police while he continued to mourn, reaching to his wife's dust. She checked the time again when the lion monster fell to the ground from the taser. Frisk paused the video and leaned back in the chair. The time frame from where the police stationed at City Hall held Rebekah's husband to where the horde of officers arrived on the scene was too short to be normal. In the time since they had arrived at the surface, Ebott had grown from a very small town to one bordering on a metropolis. The station was almost on the opposite side of the district. There was no way that _all_ those officers had been able to get there as fast as they had. "… What?"

Frisk's attention glued back to the monitors when she pressed play again. Frisk chewed at her lip when the monsters fled from the grip of the oncoming officers. She watched Sans trying to look over and around, pressed against a throng of other monsters by the police officers with the body shields. The pleas cut off by each other panged Frisk's determined soul with sadness and admittedly some guilt. Even though _she_ hadn't done anything to harm the monsters, it was still her people that had. Every monster that had been clasped in handcuffs had been pushed away by the officers and tazed when they tried to run from the scene to safety. Frisk was certain that the electric shock of the tasers imprinted themselves in her brain. Monster after monster dropped on the pavement knocking some unconscious immediately while others still convulsed and were inhumanely pulled from the ground and taken towards the awaiting vans.

" _Look!_ " The Frisk in the video as well as the one watching turned to where Sans was looking. Papyrus was standing with his arms wide open, not advancing on the officers that pointed their guns at him. Papyrus was smiling, but it was sadly. He had always been a very empathetic skeleton, and to see him sad and still forgiving hurt her. He still was naive and hopeful for everyone, monster and human alike.

" _WHY ARE YOU DOING THESE BAD THINGS?"_

" _Back away slowly. Get down on the ground and put your hands behind your head!"_

" _I KNOW YOU DON'T MEAN TO DO THIS, THAT YOU'RE JUST SCARED."_

Despite Papyrus being so simple, he was very understanding. No matter what, he always wanted to be there to help people. Even back in the Underground when he was supposed to capture her, they had become best friends. Papyrus never wanted to hurt anyone and was the greatest advocate of peace she had ever known even when he was staring death in the face.

" _I said, get down!"_

Frisk furrowed her brows and leaned in to try and make out what Sans and Muffet had talked about, but it was drowned out by another monster screaming a plea of safety. From the angle, it was hard to read their lips since they were faced away from the camera, now she was only faced with a side view of her friends on that monitor.

" _IT'S OKAY! I STILL BELIEVE IN YOU! ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS PUT THAT DOWN, AND IT'LL BE OKAY! I KNOW YOU CAN STILL DO GOOD THINGS!"_

Frisk saw Sans pull from Muffet's grasp, every intention in his eye of killing the humans that knelt and were readying themselves to shoot. She watched the give blasters summoned and heard her own voice, begging Sans to stop, the blasts which were _way_ more than enough to kill something miss the humans by a fraction of an inch. There would've been hardly—if any chance—of saving Sans had he hit his target. Seeing Sans and Muffet getting dragged away in handcuffs was one of the hardest things she had ever had the displeasure of witnessing.

" _Sans! Muffet!"_

Frisk watched herself go down the stairs and to her friends but was stopped by Jason. She watched her friends on the monitor. In truth, she had no right to try and go to their side. She just remembered feeling the desperate need to help in any way she can. She had been so busy arguing with Jason about his desperation to stop her, she hadn't seen Sans pull against the bindings when Jason yanked her wrist, making her wince. His grip had been more than enough to keep her in place against his body and pull her away from the scene. Frisk watched herself scream for Sans when he collapsed on the concrete after being knocked out. Jason had been adamant about keeping a hold of her wrist and she was unable to go and help him and was forced to watch them load his limp body into their van with Muffet close behind. Frisk watched Jason look at something in the distance, something off the view of all the monitors. A brow had raised, and his chin had lifted, almost like he was observing something. At the time, she had been pulling and yanking, ignoring his firm grip. Whatever it was that Jason had been looking at, it gathered his attention enough to where she had pulled from his hold and ran to the door of the van, pounding on it with both of her fists. She turned from that monitor when it cleared after she had left to chase after the truck.

The other still contained Jason, his gaze fixated on an unknown while monsters ran around him. It was unnerving, and he wasn't doing anything but standing there. She glanced down at the timer and Jason had stood for about a full three minutes, focusing on that spot. Frisk watched him open his mouth and she leaned forward to catch what was being said, but she heard nothing. Not from him, not from the background noise. Frisk rewound it and encountered the same thing. Not exactly privy to the makings and workings of security cameras, she couldn't do anything to figure out what was happening to this part of the footage. Whatever he had been looking at seemed to jar him, since Jason moved and then was gone. Frisk blinked and rewound the footage again. When she checked the timer, a full minute was missing. She sighed and ran her hands down her face. Obviously curious to what was left in that minute, but unable to do anything she ignored it for the time being. Frisk had her prove, visually as well as auditory. Blue eyes scanned the area, trying to find someway to make a hard copy. She backed up and pulled out some metallic drawers on the desk, only finding untwisted paper clips, rubber bands, and other clutter of similar content.

Frisk turned around and pulled open the closet. Inside was a lunch box, two coats that most likely belonged to the security guards that were usually posted, and a hat that read "#1 Dad". Frisk was about ready to scream out of anger and stress. She stood up so quick, the chair flew to the other side of the office, slamming against the wall. Footsteps echoed against the flooring, making Frisk freeze. Even if she _was_ given the key, she couldn't be caught in here. If she was found with the key, one of two things would happen. She would have had to have stolen the key or Mayor Tills would've had to have to given it to her, which could end up with him being discharged from his position or charged with obstruction of justice and tampering with evidence, if not all three things.

"Shit shit shit…" Frisk muttered under her breath, trying to find something, _anything_ to use as a hard copy. With shaking hands, she opened the filing cabinet and sifted through the things in each drawer. As much as she wanted to stand and watch all of this, and read all the archives, the ever-closing footsteps reminded her of her predicament. The smallest desk drawer was locked when she yanked on it. Frisk prayed by some maricle that the key the mayor gave her would fit. She exhaled when it clicked. When she yanked open the drawer, unmarked discs were scattered inside, unorganized and no labels. She gave a breathless laugh and grabbed one. The tremors in her hands increasing as the footsteps grew even closer. She opened the case and put the disc inside of the machine.

 _Dammit, now what?!_

Frisk urgently pushed any button that her fingertips touched, just wanting a copy. Internally screaming, she pressed a button that popped up a window that read _downloading_. The footsteps had arrived outside of the door. "C'mon c'mon c'mon…" She pleaded in a whisper, sweat beading on her forehead as an unlocking _click_ sounded, and the doorknob turned. When the door didn't open, she saw that the door had luckily lodged itself just underneath the doorknob, preventing it from being opened easily. With every turn and push, it was becoming undone.

 _98%_

The door was pushed again, the wheeled chair squeaking from the force. It was on three wheels.

 _99%_

The chair had fallen just as the content was being completed. She practically ripped the disc from the drive when it ejected itself. She returned the disc in the jewel case just as the doorknob turned. Frisk looked around and got into the closet and closed it quietly behind her clutching the disc to her chest. The door was forced open and Frisk screwed her eyes shut when the chair was forced from the door. She opened her eyes and was surrounded by the darkness of the closet. Her breathing was shallow with her chest heaving.

Whoever entered the office behind her walked slowly, almost like they were looking for something particular. Frisk covered her mouth with her hand, listening to the person sifting around and typing on the computer. The creepiest part in her mind, was that the person wasn't talking or making any kind of sound. It was almost like they _knew_ someone else was in there and didn't want to give away anything that could identify them. Time passed at a snail's pace while Frisk remained in the closet with shaking legs. The footsteps left and the door was closed behind them, the footsteps becoming more faint with each passing second. The back of Frisk's head met the back of the closet and she exhaled in relief. Tentatively, she opened the door of the closet and peeked outside. She was alone. She exited the closet and looked at the monitors, all were black. Her brows furrowed at the sight. Had the person that was in here found what they were looking for? Frisk turned and gasped loudly and rolled her eyes. Her reflection from the mirror on the back of the closet. She was stared down by her own reflection which was donned with the #1 Dad hat. Frisk clicked her tongue and ripped the hat off her head and put it back. When she had forcefully entered the closet, it must've fallen on her head. She closed the doors and turned back to the monitors. She flipped on the switch and pressed a few buttons until she arrived at the menu where she had been before. The words _Data Corrupted_ flashing in red appeared on all the screens. She furrowed her brows and pressed a few more keys to try and access the outside cameras but was met with red _Data Corrupted_. Whoever was in there, Frisk was thankful that she had gotten the data first, or she would've been shit out of luck. Thankful that something was going right for once, she exited the window and was met with the live feed. A figure clad in black was heading near the back of City Hall, towards an exit.

"Thank goodness…" Frisk muttered, finally able to relax. The possibility that the person had been outside of the office ready to ambush her had been pushing itself to be noticed. If that had've happened, who knows what would've happened. She could've died… there was no coming back. She made sure to fix things to the way they were the best she could before heading towards the door. When she grabbed the doorknob, she stopped, sniffing the air. A fragrance wafted in the air. It was something between a woodsy smell and a regal sort of cologne. It seemed to be a rather… interesting fragrance to put on when breaking into a room.

 _Well… I kinda did too… Oh! But I had a key! … well… they did too… But I was doing something good!_

Frisk argued with herself as she left. The very real fear of the lurker being outside reared its ugly head again when she left and locked the door behind her. She had two options: she could go and give the key back to Mayor Tills, or risk it and head to Judge Davis' office at the courthouse. Despite wanting to be around someone else to try and calm her down, she headed to the front entrance, sticking the small case inside of her shirt and adjusting it so it looked normal. She headed out and down the stairs, noting the light where Mayor Tills' office was; it was off.

 _Good thing I chose to go to Judge Davis_.

She turned and stuck to the streetlights, making sure to go through the center of town where there were other people and cars going by. Unfortunately, Frisk couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched, or even worse, followed. Shivers ran down her spine and the hair on the back of her neck stood up. Shaking away her fears, she tried to fuel her determination. Her friends… and Sans. That's what's most important right now… she couldn't stray from that because of her fears. Turning the corner from a popular bar (but nowhere as good as Grillby's), the large white courthouse came into view. Frisk breathed another sigh of relief, ignoring the nausea and dizziness. She gave awkward smiles to the humans that noticed her and waved. Taking the steps two at a time, she arrived at the door.

"Damn…." Frisk muttered to herself through her heaving breathing. "I need to work out more."

The inside of the courthouse was even more intimidating than City Hall. Columns of marble attached to each side of the wall, breaking in its linear pattern only for the reception desk where a blonde female was, typing away at her computer. She smiled, glad to be in the presence of a familiar face during this terrifying time. She relaxed and headed to the counter.

"Daniella." Frisk smiled when the woman looked up and broke into a bright smile of her own.

"Frisk! What are you doing here?" She asked, standing up and coming around the front of her desk. "It's been like, forever since I've seen you."

"I'm here to see Judge Davis." Frisk said. "Is he still here?"

Daniella scrunched up her nose at her friend and folded her arms.  
"Yeah, he is. But are you feeling okay? Why would you want to visit _him_?"

"It's… about what happened today."

"The riot at City Hall?" Daniella asked and sighed, putting her hands on her hips. "I… I heard about it. About the monster that… that passed. I just… It's so hard to believe that Rebekah's gone."

"…" Frisk nodded. Rebekah had tutored her and Daniella after class when Toriel was busy with grading some papers along with her own sons. "Yeah…"

"I heard Sans was there too."

"Y-Yeah… Mr. Snowdin was." Frisk said and looked up at her friend.

" _Mr. Snowdin_?" Daniella asked. Frisk looked at Daniella who didn't push the matter. Daniella had been living out of Ebott City for a while but had recently come back. She had no idea what happened between her and Sans. "Anyway, Judge Davis is in his chambers. I'd get going if I were you, I think he's going to be going soon. We need to catch up, so you can tell me what the hell is going on!"

Frisk waved her agreement when Frisk headed up the stairs to where Judge Davis' chambers were. She went to the door with his nameplate and rolled her eyes. A migraine was already coming on from just the mere _thought_ of having to deal with Judge Davis. She raised her hand and was about to knock when the door opened. She blinked and was met face to face with the Judge.

"Oh. Frisk." Judge Davis said and yawned. "What do you want?"

"I need to talk to you about the riot today." Frisk said. "Could we go in your office and talk?"

"Frisk, I'm on my way home."

"I'll make it quick." Frisk pushed. Judge Davis rolled his eyes and walked back inside and closed the door behind him. Frisk's nose flared slightly, and she opened the door and walked inside after him. The office smelled like leather and alcohol. Judge Davis should've been in jail with his terrible crime against hair. His toupee didn't even _try_ to match his hair, but he seemed to think that he looked amazing and a gift together. He always had a smug look on his face; a smirk and raised brows. Sometimes, Frisk was sure that it was his default face and he didn't know how to make any others. "I nee—"

"Let me guess: you want me to get your monster friends out of jail."

"… Yes." Frisk gritted her teeth. He was so condescending! If she could just hit him once, it would make her feel _so_ much better. Judge Davis exhaled and smirked, shrugging his shoulders. He might as well have been wearing a sign that flashed _asshole_ and _I don't care_. Davis was practically renowned for his blatant discrimination on monster matters, of course on smaller matters where the law couldn't get involved. It goes without saying that Davis was reveling that he was able to hold monsters indefinitely because of his word.

"Well Frisk, I'm sorry to say I can't help you." Davis said and shrugged his shoulders; flippant in both tone and stance. He leaned back against his oak desk. Whatever he had going on at home, it must've paled in comparison to trying to get Frisk to get angry and ruin her plan. "The monsters broke the law, so they have to be imprisoned for it. Mr. Leon and Mr. Snowdin especially."

"Most of the monsters that were taken into custody had been bystanders and had nothing to do with the confrontation and were trying to leave the scene." Frisk said. There was no way this was going to go easy and he wasn't going to go down without a fight. "Mr. Snowdin acted in self defense of his brother who was threatened while he was doing nothing."

"Papyrus Snowdin, huh?"

"… Yes." She hated that Davis even said her friend's name. It sounded dirty whenever he said it, whenever he said _anything_. "The police were going to shoot Papyrus Snowdin who was making no move to hurt them whatsoever. Sans Snowdin attacked the police to save his brother who would've been unjustly shot."

Judge Davis chuckled and shrugged his shoulders, shaking his head.  
"You _honestly_ think that you coming down here and asking me is going to grant your request? Of course, you're going to talk highly of them. You're their ambassador after all. You can look through it with a filtered lens. Look at it unfiltered, and you can see that they belong in jail. They're a danger to everyone else if they're out. Just a small tiff and they're willing to kill countless people."

"W-What?! A little _tiff_?!" Frisk yelled. "They were going to _murder_ a monster on the basis of him just being a monster."

"And?"

"What?"

"You said it yourself. Just on the basis of him being a _monster._ A monster. That's all they are." Davis said and shrugged his shoulders. "However, I am not without reason and must abide by the law." Frisk rolled her eyes which only earned a laugh from her verbal enemy. "The monsters that were taken I'll let out. As you've said, most of them were taken unjustly and as much as I dislike it, their records indicated that they were harmless… by _legal_ standards." Frisk's triumphant smile quickly faded. Leave it to him to trick her into thinking she won. "Since I'm such an amazing guy, I'll even release your friend Miss Hill."

 _What's your game…?_

"But?" Frisk asked, folding her arms.

"I will not release Mr. Leon _or_ Mr. Snowdin." Judge Davis said. His smirk widened seeing Frisk a few more hits from falling apart. She knew that he was trying to bait her. If she resorted to violence, she would lose her place as ambassador effectively leaving the monsters without someone to represent them in legal, ethical, and morality issues.

"I'll admit… I have no way to release Mr. Leon…" He would probably end up being convicted and spending a _lot_ of time in jail. After all, he had tried to murder a police officer. Yes, it was because that officer _did_ murder his wife… but he did retaliate. "I want his sentence lessened. I also want the police officer that did murder Rebekah Leon to be tried for murder."

"And I would agree to that… _why_?"

"You said it yourself. You're such an 'upstanding man who follows the law'." Frisk repeated. "Mr. Leon did commit a crime, but so did the officer. In addition, I want Mr. Snowdin released with no prison time."

Frisk's blue eyes widened at the loud laugh that echoed through the pompous office. Funny how much you could tell about a person by their chosen décor. Snarky and smug yes, but she hadn't ever heard him laugh like that before. Nor did she want to hear it again.

"You're delusional."

"Sans Snowdin stopped a murder."

"By almost murdering five officers himself." Davis reminded and wiped some tears from his eyes. "Look, as cute as it is that you're going to so much trouble to try and get Snowdin released, it's not going to happen. Give it up." Frisk felt her skin crawl when the Judge eyed her up and down. "Unless you can somehow prove that your little friend wasn't trying to harm police and tag teaming with his brother, then we're done here." Frisk smirked staring straight ahead as Judge Davis walked passed her.

"That's a very interesting fragrance you've got." Frisk said, continuing to keep her eyes on the bookcase littered with files and assortments of knick knacks of different prices—needlessly expensive either way. She heard the Judge stop.

"It is. My wife got it for me."

"It… has a tendency to… linger after you've left a room."

"Is that so?" Davis muttered, clearly aloof and uninterested. "I never noticed."

"That's because you left the room." Frisk said. "Either way, you're going to release Sans Snowdin." She reached into her shirt.

"We've been over this Dreemurr, I—" Davis stopped when Frisk turned around, waving the disc.

"What's wrong?" Frisk feigned confusion. They were at an impasse. Playing games of mental and verbal chess could be a pain in the ass and if not done right, it could get screwed up and everything she'd worked for wouldn't come to fruition. The fragrance was the final piece. "You look like you've seen a ghost. Does this mean something to you?"

"W-What's that?" He asked, but Frisk noticed how rigid he went.

"Proof." Frisk said. "Proof that the monsters were taken unjustly as well as proof that Mr. Snowdin was protecting his brother from being brutally murdered by the police force."

"…"

"Do you have a TV, so we can view this proof you so desperately craved?" Frisk smirked even wider when Judge Davis sucked his teeth and walked to the other side of the room and opened what Frisk had thought was a closet, but held a DVD player, a VHS player, and a television all clearly used for evidence viewing and honestly probably some 'adult content' on Davis' part. She went to the disc player and entered it, watching the scene play out. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see Davis clenching his jaw and his nose flaring. She knew that he hated monsters, but it surprised even Frisk that he would go to the lengths of tampering evidence to keep them imprisoned. "Well well, look at that." Frisk said watching Sans and Papyrus on the footage. "Looks like Sans was protecting Papyrus, wouldn't you say Judge?"

 _Checkmate._

"If you still disagree… we can hold a trial. I'm sure a jury will be _very_ interested in seeing this evidence. Wouldn't you?"

"… Sans Snowdin is freed."

Frisk took the disc from the drive. There was no way in _hell_ that she was going to leave this with him. If he was willing to go far enough to erase vital evidence, he would undoubtedly erase, corrupt, or even break the disc.

"Fill out the paperwork so I can get them out." Davis went to his bookcase and ripped out a folder, writing on the forms. She had no idea what any of it really meant while writing, but when the documents were thrust in her face, even she could see that it was a legal binding document to indict the officer who murdered Rebekah, lessen Ivan Leon's sentence, and the release of the rest of the monsters. "Always a pleasure, Judge Davis." She said and headed to the door with both the disc and the papers.

"Be careful Dreemurr… You're in a dangerous line of work and teetering."

Frisk didn't turn and look back at him. She left the room and went back down to the lobby. Daniella had already gone home. It didn't matter at that moment. She had saved them… It felt like she had been nothing but trouble to the monsters lately, but here she was doing something. Nausea crept up on Frisk, making her lean against the wall outside of the courtroom, her face paling and sweat pricking the back of her neck. Frankly, if she had said she hadn't been terrified of the likelihood that she would've let her friends down, she'd be lying. Her body must be just catching up with her. She gripped onto her stomach, closing her eyes and focused her breathing to calm herself down. With trembling hands, she took out her phone and made a call.

"Hey… could you meet me at the jail?" Frisk smiled sadly. "It won't take long. I'll be there soon."

Frisk hung up the phone and shoved it back in her pocket. Trudging along, she headed back to the jail. A bed and a nice nap sounded amazing right now, but she couldn't relax until her friends were out safe and sound. The walk back to the jail felt it was taking a lot longer than it had the other way around. The streets were bare compared to how they had been; a car had passed every couple of minutes and most people were inside. This part of Ebott City was bright during the night as all the night business opened around this time; such as bars, diners, and… other places. On one hand, the bright lights brought her comfort from the darkness, it also was distracting as all people that were outside would be heading inside to be patrons. No one during the night cycle would take notice of a person walking by themselves at night in this part of town. Her steps were uneven, and she was becoming dizzier. Sounds of laughter and clinking glasses from the nearby bar helped bring her double vision into focus.

By the time Frisk reached the jail, she was barely able to stay standing. The person she called was standing outside looking around awkwardly. Dressed in boots, leggings, and a cute coat she must've been cold. Every time she breathed a little puff of air presented itself before dissipating into the air. If things had been different, Frisk would've brought a jacket. It didn't matter what time of year it was, nights in Ebott City got cold. It wasn't cold enough to kill you, but it was enough to make you extremely sick if you weren't indoors or bundled up. She walked up to the girl waiting for her, smiling.

"Fall." Frisk said. "There you are."

The bundled-up girl turned and gasped.  
"Frisk?!" She exclaimed. "What are you doing with no jacket on? Are you crazy?" She quickly began to undo her jacket. Frisk took her hand and put it on Fall's. "What's wrong?"

"I'm alright." She assured. The look on Fall's face showed she didn't believe her. It probably was obvious; she felt terrible. Frisk knew she looked terrible too. "Sorry I called you out here so late."

"Um…it's okay. What did you want to meet for?"

Frisk held out the folder of papers and watched Fall read it. Her eyes brightened.  
"W-What? When? How? Are you sure?"

"Papers. Earlier. You don't want to know. Yes." Frisk answered and took the papers back. "… I'm going to turn these in… Fall, please, don't tell Sans I did this."

"What? Why?"

"… It's a long story, just… please promise me you won't."

"Well… alright, but… what am I supposed to tell him?"

"I… I don't know, just make something up."

Frisk went into the jail without another word, Fall following close behind. She followed Fall to the ward where Sans and her friends were at. The person behind the desk at the ward looking up at her with furrowed brows, concern seeping into his eyes.

"Miss Dreemurr are you alright?" Frisk handed him the papers, getting to the point where she was unable to speak adequately. The male looked over the papers and looked back up at Frisk. Everyone in the law or government positions knew how hard it was to get Davis to agree to anything one requested of him, so it wasn't surprising that she was getting all the shocked expressions.

"… Now. Please."

"Y-Yes ma'am! Of course!" The man said and stood up, stamping the papers. He went to the door with Fall trailing behind. "Are you coming ma'am?" Unable to talk, Frisk merely shook her head. The man and Fall disappeared behind the door. Once the door screamed to a halt, she looked through the small window. The man behind the desk had handed some papers over to a man with a chevron mustache and a toothpick between his lips. Even though he was wearing sunglasses, Frisk could tell he looked pissed.

 _What kind of ass wears sunglasses indoors at_ night _?_

Sans had gone to the cell gate and said something to Fall who nodded. Whatever she had responded, Sans' sockets widened, and brow bones furrowed in disbelief. Frisk was elated when the gate opened, and he was free from the prison. Muffet was clapping all her hands which only added to her elation. Fall wrapped both of her arms around Sans' neck while he wrapped one around her waist. When they parted, Fall had laughed at something Muffet had said and Frisk could get a full view of her friends. Sans looked exhausted and slightly in pain. The tie he had been wearing was draped lazily around his neck. The first two buttons on his white button up shirt were undone, and the sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. Part of her thought she could see dark circles under his sockets. She smiled softly, when he shoved his hands back in his pockets and look away, like he always used to do when he was nervous or heard something embarrassing. Frisk met eye contact with Muffet and tried to smile. A concerned look crossed Muffet's face.

Frisk turned around and left the jail, feeling accomplished that she had been able to do something for someone who had once been the most important person to her. Who was each other's most important person. Shaking her head, she focused on heading home. She staggered on the street and leaned against a tree, balancing herself with a hand. Frisk's shoulders hunched forward, expelling all contents from her stomach onto the sidewalk. She leaned on the tree more, making a bigger puddle of vomit. Frisk was gasping for breath between each fit, her body turning against her unwilling to give her a break. Her shoes were covered as was the base of the tree before she was finally able to fully breathe again. She desperately needed to blow her nose. If she could just get home, she would clean herself up and take care of herself before getting in bed. The tip of Frisk's shoe got caught in the crack of the sidewalk and she fell into her newly made puddle. She tried to push herself up but ended up back in the puddle. She was so tired, her eyelids fluttered to keep them awake. Regardless of her best efforts, they closed just as a pair of feet stood next to her.


	11. Denial

The occasional flickering lights paired with the off-tune singing of the on-duty police officer did nothing for the declining morale in the cells. The morose atmosphere was a weight crushed onto the shoulders of all who were trapped. Sans rolled up his sleeves to his elbows and lay his head against the stone wall. Across the cell, Muffet stared into the distance with eyes the dullest he had ever seen them. Second to Papyrus, she always tried to keep a positive outlook on things on the Surface. Now Sans found himself staring at a hollow shell of his once peppy friend. Through the hours, he had tried talking to her, but she had merely brushed him off wanting to 'be alone with her thoughts'. Sans understood in a way, so he hadn't pushed it. While waiting for some sort of deus ex machina, his thoughts had wandered as well frantically wanting to focus on something— _anything_ other than his current predicament. To his home. To his brother. His friends. Life in the Underground compared to life on the surface. Fall. _Frisk._ When his thoughts fell on the young woman with the shining brown hair and the deep blue eyes, he dug the heels of his hands into his closed sockets and let out a deep groan of exasperation from deep in his person. He pictured her smiling at him from the top of the small tree she had climbed outside of Tori and Asgore's house. She had smiled at him—and him at her—many times during the years. In spite of his own desires, he recalled the first time her smile had changed. Sans stood up swiftly, ignoring the shocked expression across Muffet's face, and began to pace. Why did his mind have to take him _there_ of all places? Wasn't he already having a hard enough time? His strides became faster and ferocious across the concrete floor. One of the _last_ things he needed to do was live in the past. Each _tap_ of his foot against the concrete rushed more thoughts into his brain. The first time he had heard her laugh on the Surface. The first time he had seen the stars; she had sat on his lap and pointed out the many constellations. It had become something of a tradition. Each year they had returned to that spot and star gazed. His hand twitched. Although it was one of his favorite collection of memories; no, correction, it _**was**_ one of his favorite memories. Now it was tormenting, and he _refused_ to let himself go there.

His memories though… they had other ideas. A fierce montage of memories presented themselves; _demanding_ to be remembered _determined_ to not be forgotten. They had started out sitting together, the little girl on his lap. With each flip of the metaphorical book, something happened. She sat cross-legged on his lap. When Frisk had gotten too big to sit in his lap, she had sat right next to him. As Frisk continued to grow older, they laid down and watched the stars. It hadn't mattered to him that the small village of Ebott was growing into a larger town just below the cliff where they were enjoying the sprawled-out cosmos. It had just been them enjoying one of the many wonders he had come to know in the time of living on the Surface. Sometime during the years, he found himself looking at her more than the stars. Frisk sat up. Sat further apart. Left sooner.

" _hey kid, can i uh… talk to ya for a minute?"_

The last picture of the flip book—

"Keep that up Dearie and you're going to dig a trench in the floor."

Sans jumped and looked around. Muffet. The cells. The depression and hopelessness in the air. That's right. _This_ is where he was. Sans' sockets met Muffet's many eyes and shook his head, waving away her concerned look.

"just thinkin' that's all."

Muffet opened her mouth to speak, the grinding of the metal prison door interrupting. A tall man came into the room and headed to the desk where the asshole with the cheap mustache sat, continuing to sing off tune. By the 10th song, Sans was almost positive the officer was doing it just to grate on their nerves. Heads peeked between the bars, making sure not to touch the metal as they all watched the man drop a sizable manila file onto the desk. The off-tune singing stopped as the officer picked up the papers and began reading them. The continuous smug smirk Sans had come to associate with this _human_ faded into something between a frown and a snarl. He stood up and unhooked a large ring of iron keys from his belt.

"Sans!" The tired skeleton turned to the voice and blinked, seeing Fall.

"fall. didn't i tell ya to leave?" Fall's demeanor was a complete 180 from what he had seen before. Fall smiled and nodded, interlocking her fingers in front of her.

"Yeah, but… I wanted to come and pick you up."

 _pick me up?_

Sans' sockets widened, and brow bones furrowed when the smug officer, now looking defeated unlocked his cell and opened it. He heard Muffet clapping all her hands behind him. Determination was renewed with each cell that was opened. He felt arms wrap around his neck and looked at Fall who had buried her face in his chest.

"I was so worried." Fall said, and Sans could hear her voice cracking. With a small smile of his own, he wrapped an arm around her waist which only earned a tightening grip. They had all been brought to jail with no promise of a trial or a jail sentence in due time. Of course she had been worried about him. He rubbed her back and she parted seemingly pleased that he was—in fact—here and well.

"Oh Dearie, I think you should wait until we're at least out of here before you get all lovey-dovey. Don't you think?" Muffet said and looked at Sans with a coy smile. He heard Fall's melodic laugh from next to him. Sans shoved his hands in his pockets and looked away. Muffet's laughter stopped and Sans noticed her gaze focused on the door. When he followed her gaze, he saw nothing but heard uneven footsteps getting more distant with each passing second.

"We're going to fill out the paperwork in order to finalize your release." The man that had delivered the papers stated. Even though that meant that they were going to remain in the prison a little longer, they would be out soon.

Thankfully, the officers had moved rather quickly and within the next hour, Sans was out. He had never been so happy to be outside in his life. He took a deep breath, basking in the crisp, cold air. Above him, almost taunting him to remember, was the shining beams of stars. He tore his gaze from the ether when he felt an arm wrap around his. Fall's smile brought him back down to reality and Sans found himself smiling in response. His footsteps fell in time to Falls and they walked on the sidewalk. Every now and again he noticed a few humans glancing at them while Fall chirped merrily, oblivious to the looks they were receiving. Perhaps he was just imagining things because of what happened. They crossed through the middle of town towards the outskirts. Fall lived on the part of Ebott City that had been there for years, even before the monsters had come to the Surface. It was on the side of where the small village used to be before it grew to its current size. The trees were healthy, and the smell of nature merged with the air, noticeably cleaner than what was in the city. Ebott was very ecofriendly, but nothing beat the original. Many times, Sans had wondered if she had moved here or if Fall had lived in Ebott for the years and saw Ebott grow to the metropolis it was today, but it really wasn't his business. He knew himself well enough to realize that he would end up asking more questions and didn't want to think of where they could end up.

Fall's house was small, almost bordering on a cottage. It was a brick home with a tan roof with material he was unfamiliar with. It had a small chimney and white windows. It was simple and sweet, like Fall herself. He walked to the door with her and stood at the door.  
"I could always walk you home…" Fall suggested and watched Sans with a small smile.

"you're already freezing as it is." Sans said and smiled. "it takes me longer to get cold, you know that."

"I—"

"i can tell how cold you are."

Fall blushed and shuffled her foot against the stone walkway. Sans could see that she was shivering and trying to hide it. He held her head and leaned down, kissing her forehead.  
"go inside." He said. "i won't leave until you do."

Fall's blush grew, reaching the tips of her ears. She nodded and dug in her jacket pocket to get her key. Just as he promised, Sans waited until she was inside, had locked the door, and turned on a light before he left. Sans usually would take the long way home but decided to take every shortcut that he knew of—excluding teleporting—to get back home. Those metal bars at the prison had sapped him of all magic. A monster's magic was tied directly to their physical status; his lack of it was leaving him exhausted. As much as he wanted to stay outside and stare at the stars, his legs quickly took him back to his home. A large part of him had been terrified that something would've happened to his home, but when he came over the small hill that slightly hid his home from the northern view, it was just as it had always been. A light was on and he could see the silhouette of people inside. From the shapes, it was Undyne and Papyrus. The closer he got to his home, the rustling of leaves belonging to the nearby bushes caught attention. Out of the corner of his sockets, the leaves stopped swaying. He scoffed slightly and had his hand hovering over the doorknob when he heard it again. Quickly he turned and headed towards the bushes. The pattern of the swaying leaves was not from the occasional breeze. In addition, it was much too cold for any animal residing in Ebott or its surrounding area to be wandering around. A figure moved from the bushes and he saw the form run from its position into the night. Sans ran a step forward but restrained himself. He was in no position to be chasing after something in the night. He narrowed his sockets and turned back to his home. He waited for a moment, listening to the person's return. When he heard nothing, Sans opened the door and entered his home.

Warmth washed over his bones and instantly set him at ease. The inside of his home was exactly as he had left it. If it wasn't for his tired and aching bones and the clothes he was wearing, he would've been inclined to believe that it might've been a dream. Sans had just closed the door behind him when hurried footsteps slammed from the kitchen.

"SANS!"

"Sans!"

Washed over with relief, his face relaxed into a smile. Both Papyrus and Undyne were unharmed and safe. On the way home, he had been sorting through each bit of torture the humans could've done to his brother and friends had they been caught.  
"heya…" Sans exhaled and rubbed his head. His cranium was throbbing and he was hungry.

"SANS! I WAS SO WORRIED!" Papyrus shouted, tears gathering in his sockets.

"paps…" Sans patted his brother on the shoulder. "thanks for worrying about me, but i'm fine." In his peripheral vision, he could see Undyne's features change. "i'm actually a little hungry."

"NEVER FEAR BROTHER! MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS WILL COOK YOU SOMETHING THAT WILL MAKE YOU LESS HUNGRY, AND EVEN FULL!"

When Papyrus was content in the kitchen, humming, he looked over at Undyne. It was clear that she knew there was more to the event than he was letting Papyrus in on. Taking a seat on the couch with a grunt of pain, he gestured for Undyne to take a spot next to him.

"…"

". . ."

"Where's Muffet?"

"she went home." Sans said. "… how is everyone else?"

"The rest of us got away. For some reason, none of them chased us. I think if it wasn't for you, we would've been followed." Undyne sighed and rubbed the back of her neck.

"honestly, i still can't figure out why they let us out so soon. with everything that had happened, i was sure that they would have us in there for years."

"They just let you out?"

"yeah. some guy came in and handed this officer with a cheap mustache our release papers. where he got them and who processed them… they wouldn't tell us."

Back in the booking station after many of the monsters had tried to press the guard for more information, it left Sans and Fall alone with the man. Muffet had wanted to stay with, but Fall insisted she go since the spider monster was barely able to keep her eyes open. No matter how many questions Sans had asked either of them, no one would tell him anything. It was like it was a secret.

"…"

"no." Sans said and watched Undyne roll her eyes and look away, leaning her arm on the rest beside her. It didn't take a rocket scientist to realize that the primary suspect for the deus ex machina was Frisk. He refused to believe it though; after everything that had happened between them, Frisk wouldn't want to help them. She had made it pretty clear with recent actions that there was a clear distinction between humans and monsters. No matter how long and how fiercely they all advocated for peace and equality, that blatant line refused to disappear. There wasn't any room for negotiation.

"How was it in there?"

Sans looked forward, not really focusing on anything in his field of vision. The cries from the other cells filled brain, the off-tune singing of the officer. The scorching that reached into his marrow from the iron bars stinging and branding him. The exhaustion that exuded from him.

"it was a prison." Sans said. "it wasn't exactly a sleepover. but it's all over and we're all fine now."

 _liar._

"Is that so?"

"yeah. of course."

 _you're such a liar._

"Alright." Undyne said and stood up just as Papyrus had come into the living room with a bowl of spaghetti and an oddly perfect looking garlic bread loaf. He looked up at Papyrus and raised a brow bone.

"GRILLBY WANTED TO MAKE SOME AND BROUGHT IT OVER. SINCE I _AM_ THE BEST BROTHER EVER, OF COURSE I'M GOING TO SHARE IT WITH MY ONE AND ONLY BROTHER."

"heh. thanks, paps." Sans said and took the small tray.

"Well, I'm going to get going. Alphys is ordering takeout and we're going to binge watch anime." Undyne stretched and waved at the two skeleton brothers before leaving.

While Sans was snacking on the food Papyrus—and Grillby—had made, his lids became heavy. He had only made it barely halfway through when Papyrus' voice cut through the air.

"SANS! YOU MUST BE TIRED! I'LL PUT THIS IN THE FRIDGE FOR YOU AND YOU CAN EAT IT TOMORROW. THEN I'LL MAKE MORE FOR YOU." Papyrus said and took the tray. "DO YOU WANT ME TO READ YOU A BEDTIME STORY?"

"next time paps."

"OF COURSE, BROTHER!"

Sans stood up, slightly unsteady. He walked up the stairs, passed the painting that was in their old house in the Underground and went into his room, closing the door behind him. He frowned and looked down at his clothes. They were dirty and messed up. Upon closer inspection small holes littered the pants and the hem of the shirt. So much for the only pair of 'formal' attire he owned. Sans tossed them onto the floor and donned his regular nighttime attire. He looked around his room and snapped his fingers. He blinked and looked around. The same messy room. The same floor and walls. It was rather disconcerting. Monster food was pure magic, dissolving into the monster's system to fuel their powers. Worry set in and he actively tried to push it away. He snapped again; not even a spark of magic. He sat on the edge of his bed and exhaled. It must be because of how much he had come into contact with those bars combined with how exhausted he was that sapped him of his abilities. Not to mention, he didn't eat a lot, so he was probably passed empty. He chuckled and shook his head. Sans crawled into bed and closed his sockets, turning on his side. His mind wanted to wander but was overpowered by his fatigued form and before he knew it, Sans had fell into the embrace of slumber.

The sun, high in the sky filtering through the curtain roused him from his astonishingly peaceful slumber. He stretched, his bones groaning in response to the sudden movement. The brutality from the officers the previous day was finally sinking in. His typically comfortable bed touched all the wrong places, making it painful to move. Taking a deep breath, he threw his legs over the side and squinted in pain. He pushed himself off the bed and stood for a few moments. Sans rubbed his sockets and headed downstairs, leaning on the staircase for support.

"SANS! ARE YOU AWAKE?!"

Sane stood up, internally agonizing over the pain, as Papyrus rounded the corner.

"YOU ARE! GOOD! I MADE FOOD! COME EAT! YOU'VE BEEN SLEEPING FOREVER! I COUNTED!"

Feeling comfortable and wanted, he headed into the kitchen and sat in his spot. Sans blinked, shocked at the spread before him. Spaghetti, garlic bread, orange juice, potato chips, fries, and a burger engulfed the table top. He looked from the _mound_ of food to where Papyrus was, a smile so wide covering his face that Sans had to admit he was a little worried would break his brother's jaw.

"I WENT AND TOLD Grillby THAT YOU WERE HOME AND HE MADE A LOT OF FRIES AND A BIG BURGER FOR YOU! I ASKED HIM IF HE WANTED TO COME OVER, BUT HE SAID HE HAD TO WORK TODAY."

"thank paps… you really didn't have to go through so much trouble."

"THIS IS NOTHING FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SANS!" Papyrus beamed. "NOW EAT! EAT."

Sans had to admit he was hungry. He hadn't eaten anything in over 24 hours, minus the little bit of food he ate when he got home. Every bite he took, he relaxed more. Even though Papyrus' cooking had just passed the acceptable level, it tasted and felt like home. Grillby's food was amazing as always, and within a few minutes, almost all the food from the table was gone. It had relieved some of the aching in his bones and he was able to move around without feeling like his spine was going to break.

"AMAZING SANS! I WILL MAKE A LOT OF SPAGHETTI FOR DINNER TONIGHT!"

"thanks, paps… for all of this."

"OF COURSE, SANS!" Papyrus said still holding his bright smile. "BROTHER! WOULD YOU GO TO GET GROCERIES!? BEING THE WONDERFUL CHEF I AM, ALL I HAVE TO DO IS PREPARE THE FOOD."

"yeah paps."

Sans stood up, the previous agonizing pain dulled to a mere throb. It would be easier to keep Papyrus in the dark about the situation and his pain this way. He zipped up his jacket and closed the door behind him as he left. A quick glance at the mail boxes caught his attention, each of them had mail. He went and opened each box. In Papyrus' neat box, a simple red envelope laid in the middle. It was a _little_ more crowded his Sans', but even still the red envelope lay on top of all his other letters and other pieces of mail like a blood stain. He yanked the stain from both boxes and ripped open the top. In each, an identical letter was placed. It was another warning of the increasing taxes and their impending due date. Sans looked at the shadow of his brother merrily working in the kitchen and quickly returned to the letters. Sans flipped to the second page and his breath hitched in his trachea. Not only were the taxes increasing, but the rate of the bills as well. Even though it wasn't clearly stated, Sans knew that this only applied to the monsters. This district was primarily monsters, dotted with a few human homes every now and again. At the time of the Arrival, it had been a way to keep all of the monsters in one place as they slowly integrated into society. With the letter he held, Sans could only wonder if this had been the humans' intent the whole entire time.

The numbers on the papers matched with an almost 200% increase. Quickly he ran some numbers and the average amount of G their bills were, the difference was astonishing. With the current income Sans was receiving from an odd job now and again, there was no way that they would last one month with these increases. Already switched to big brother mode, Sans shoved the letters into his jacket pocket. Even if Papyrus _did_ see the letter, he wouldn't understand what it was stating. That would only bring about more questions that he wasn't prepared to answer. All the same, he didn't want Papyrus to have one worry in the world. He closed the boxes and headed to the store, attempting to rid his mind of the numbers that had seared themselves in his mind.

The destination Sans had changed. He snapped his fingers, but remained where he was standing. He went rigid. He had rested and eaten, but he still was unable to use his magic? Fear coated every bone in his body. What if he was unable to use magic again? No. No. He wouldn't think of that. It would come back. Of course. It was just going to take a little bit longer. Maybe once he was all the way healed. Refusing to dwell on the dismal subject, he headed towards Grillby's.

The first thing Sans noticed when he entered the bar was how empty it was compared to how it usually was. There were fewer monsters in the bar than he had ever seen. The empty spots set the typically merry bar to an eerie feel. He noticed his best friend desperately shining a glass, gripping onto it with such a force Sans would practically see the glass straining to stay composed. He went to the counter and took his seat which must've drawn Grillby from his thoughts because he stopped before he shattered the glass and pressed his glasses up on his face.

"Sans."

"i'm fine… thanks for the food yesterday. it really helped."

"I'm glad. Papyrus told me you came home last night. As did the other monsters."

"yeah… it was a dismal night."

"Yes, I would imagine so." Grillby said and looked at Sans from over the rim of his glasses. "Everyone got home safely I assume?"

"yeah. as far as i know."

"… This is alarming." Met with Sans' slightly confused face, he continued. "It is very calm in here today."

"… yeah. hey uh, grillbs. have you checked the mail today?"

"No, I can't say I have. Why?"

Sans took the envelope out of his pocket with the letter sticking out and slapped it on the shining bar. He watched his friend eye him for a moment before reaching and grabbing onto the envelope. Sans looked at the table as Grillby read the letter. He jumped slightly when Grillby slammed the glass onto the bar, shattering it.

"hey! watch it flame head." Sans exclaimed. "are you crazy?" From the look behind Grillby's glasses, Sans could very clearly state that yes; at this moment he was crazy. The monster community was rather tight knit and what affected one, affected all. Even more so between the groups of friends within the already knit community. Sans watched and sighed when the paper was incinerated in Grillbs' hand and the small ashes fell to the floor behind the bar. "cool down."

"…"

Sans smirked and shrugged his shoulders.  
"you've always been a _cool-headed_ guy. don't change that now."

"Is this really the time?!"

"… of course." Sans retorted with a smile. "always a good time for my hilarious jokes."

Grillby sighed and slicked back the flame atop his head. He stayed like this for a few moments before exhaling and opening his eyes to look back at his friend.

"Does Papyrus know?" Sans merely raised a brow bone and Grillby chuckled and held his head. "Of course not. You know Sans… This is a _severely_ drastic change. He will find out sometime."

"… i'll prolong that as long as possible." Sans said and looked at the bar, tapping a phalange against the polished surface. "… grillbs. it's my sole purpose in life to make sure paps sees the world with bright, innocent eyes. if i can't do that… then i've failed as a brother."

"Sans. The world isn't perfect. Wouldn't it be better for Papyrus to know that and adapt to it?"

"… paps is all the family i have left. i don't want him to become twisted and jaded, like me."

"There are other people here too, you know. You're not alone."

"heh. yeah."

Silence fell between the two. The tension was heavy. Each monster wanted to say something, but how and what effect it would have outweighed the curiosity of the answer. Sans exhaled and shook his head. This was one fine mess that they ended up in.

"Isn't there some way we can get this taken care of?" Grillby muttered, grabbing a broom and dustpan to clean up the cinders and glass.

"how? the last time we even _attempted_ to talk to the humans about it, we ended up with a riot and a murdered monster."

"…"

"don't even—"

"You could always—"

"no—"

"try asking—"

"not happening."

"Frisk."

Both monsters stared at each other, willing the other to break first. They were the best of friends, but were each as stubborn and thick-headed as one could get. The ticking of the clock only echoed the time that passed. Grillby was the first to sigh and concede.

"At least tell me why."

"… i don't want to."

"What made you two like this?" Grillby asked. "You two used to be close. What made you guys _this_ bad? What made you borderline hate _humans_ in general?"

Sans gripped onto the edge of the bar and spun around a couple times to release some of the pent-up emotions that had bottled up. He explained to Grillby what had happened the previous year about where Jason had made fun of Papyrus and how Frisk hadn't defended him but had tried to stop Sans from intervening. The silence had fallen again before Grillby let out a incredulous laugh mixed with exasperation.

"You're serious."

"…"

"You two hate each other because of _that_?" Grillby shook his head in disbelief. "You've soured a decade of friendship because of something that could be misinterpreted? Frisk is a pacifist, she wanted to keep the peace."

"…"

"And you're just _looking_ for a fight."

"…what?" Sans raised a brow bone and watched Grillby. "don't get so _fired_ up." The flame elemental stopped immediately and glowered at the smirking skeleton.

"… But neither of you are so stupid to ruin a friendship over _that_. Did something else happen?"

"…"

"So there is." Grillby said and felt his mouth curl into a smile. "Care to share?"

"nothing happened. you're delusional. you've got heatstroke."

Grillby watched Sans, making him squirm slightly.

"So I was right?"

"what did you mean when you said I 'was looking for a fight'?"

"It wasn't so much that the whole incident got to you. It wasn't that Frisk defended Jason as a person. It was because Frisk defended her boyfriend."

Sans unconsciously bristled at that word. "… lies."

"That so?"

"yes." Sans said harshly. Right now, _he_ was the one that was flaming. "it is."

"Have you truly convinced yourself of that?" Grillby had asked after a few ticks of the wall clock.

"there's nothing to convince myself of. there's just the truth."

"Indeed." Grillby whispered. "You and Frisk—"

"if this is all we're going to talk about, i'm going to leave."

Grillby held his hands up in defeat.  
"Sans, all jokes and taunts aside, you really should try to figure out what's _really_ going on here. Something's wrong."

"i know." Sans whispered. A paper was set down in front of him. He glanced up and saw Grillby nodding at it.

"Right now, this is all I can do to help." Grillby said. When Sans had walked to the door with the paper clenched in his hand, he continued. "… Sans. Think about what I said. _Really_ think about what I said."


	12. Return and Confrontation

_Author's Note:_ So I hope that you guys like this chapter and I'm so sorry that it took so long to get this out for you. My life is literally one hectic thing after another so I had something else going on. I hope that you enjoy this chapter and that it was worth the wait at least a little bit.

* * *

Rays of sunlight had never assaulted her eyes as these did. Even behind her eyelids, the young woman could feel the intensity of the sun. When first she registered her coming out of an unconscious state, her eyes opened instantly guarding against the assault through the parted curtains. She dared a glance at her surroundings trying to look passed the spots of varying colors that dotted her vision; paling that she recognized none of the environment of where she was currently placed. With a still spinning head, she pushed herself off the surface she had been placed on. A dizzying glance confirmed that it had indeed been a bed. A comfortable one at that.

The wallpaper in the small room was an off pink floral pattern. The floors—while not pristine wood by any means—was not decrepit. The bed had faded white bedding held by a tarnished golden bedframe. The bedding matched the curtains even in its off-white nature which were slightly parted to let the small slit of sunlight in that had awoken her. Three wrought iron bars prevented the window's opening which also _barred_ off her first choice for an escape route. With the peek between the curtains, a tree swayed in the breeze. Her current aching body would protest in the loudest degree—if not refuse to work at all—if that climb had been available. While the room didn't _look_ like one that would be her grave or her prison cell it didn't look like a warm welcome either. With the addition of the small toys and books littering the floor, she couldn't help but feel the room creeping on the _"horror movie"_ level.

She took small steps testing each spot and avoiding the ones that made a groaning noise, she headed to the door. Each step closer to the teak door added to her already present shaking and shallow breathing. If the door opened and she had been spotted… She didn't even want to think of what would happen to her. When she had finally reached the space in front of the door, a small triumphant smile rose to her lips but was quickly removed when a loud creak echoed through the room and most likely to whoever, if anyone, was around. Her whole body froze, cold even down to her blood, when the hurried sounds of footsteps headed closer and closer. Eyes darting in every direction, the realization of her limited escape routes becoming more prominent. Trying to think as smart and yet as quick as she could, she dipped into the corner of the room and waited.

Praying with everything that she was that the person would pass the room and leave her alone to escape. Counting the seconds, it seemed her desperate prayer had worked. The doorknob remained unopened separating her captor and her from each other. With an exhale of breath, she didn't even know she had been holding, she lay her head against the wall and closed her eyes already exhausted once again. The sound of metal screaming to make a movement that it hadn't had to make in a while pierced through her, and she watched in horror as the doorknob turned. The door opened, and the _thump_ of her captor's boots littered the creaking floor. Hidden behind the shadow of the opened door, she tried to stay out of sight. Straining to see, she watched the black boots turn around and an exhale almost bordering on relief and pride. It didn't take long for Frisk to realize she had indeed been caught. The hand had just grabbed onto the door and pulled away her hiding space when Frisk grabbed something behind her and flung it at her captor with all the force and determination she could muster. Porcelain shattered against the captor's head and he staggered. Reaching behind her again, she gripped onto something and swung with renewed vigor and desperation. A loud _thunk_ resounded and the man collapsed, holding onto their head.

"Dammit… Frisk, what the hell?" The man on the floor said, holding his head and trying to push himself up.

Frisk peeked around the door and the full view of the man was displayed in front of her. Her blue eyes widened, and she quickly dropped what was in her hand. A now broken in half bat.

"Jason!" Frisk knelt by her boyfriend's side and brushed some hair away from his face ignoring the protests and his hands trying to push hers away. "I'm so sorry… I didn't know it was you."

"Well damn… who the hell else did you think it would be?" Jason murmured, gingerly touching the cut at the corner of his eye from the broken porcelain and the large lump on his head.

"W-Well I didn't know! I woke up here and I've never seen this room before." Frisk tried to reason, her guilt increasing with every pained groan Jason uttered. Being a pacifist, Frisk had never really been so physically strong, so she even shocked herself at the sheer determination she had presented. That had been one hell of a fight or flight response. "C'mon, let me help you up."

"You sure you're not going to finish the job?" Jason muttered and chuckled but was cut off from Frisk's cold stare. She wrapped an arm around her and hoisted him up and sat him on the bed. "You hit hard." Jason uttered. He glanced over at Frisk and smiled at her to ease the worry evident in her eyes.

"I really am sorry." Frisk said and smiled softly when Jason's hand rested atop her head. She was glad that she hadn't harmed him enough to where he needed to go to the hospital or even worse, where she could've possibly killed him. Her smile fell when Jason ruffled her hair and caressed her cheek with his thumb.

 _Frisk had never seen stars so beautiful as she had that night. She wasn't sure if it was because of the crisp, clean air swirling around or if it was because of present company. It was the eighth anniversary of the escape from the Underground. Every year they sat in the same spot looking at the stars. Sometimes during the year she'd find herself staring at the sky during differing times of the day, wanting to get away from the hustle and bustle of Ebott's inner city. From the two patches of grass that never seemed to grow back, Frisk was sure that he had been doing the same thing as well, although his reason for doing so was unclear. This year was no different. She had arrived a little late, but he hadn't seemed to notice. He had already unpacked the meal that had been ordered from Grillby's. A meal from the best chef—human or monster in her opinion—was common, almost a part of life. However, this one day every year, it was different; just a meal in the beauty of the stars with just the two of them._

 _The beauty of this night was extra spectacular. She had been happy all day, there wasn't a lot of paperwork and another monster had been hired to work in the ambassador's office. Even all this time later, progress was still slow, but it was a huge leap forward. Her excitement must've been evident because she had no more than sat down when she heard a chuckle from next to her._

" _good day kid?"_

" _Huh? How could you tell?"_

" _i'm surprised your face isn't exhausted from that wide of a smile."_

"… _Sorry."_

" _i didn't say it was a bad thing." Sans had said. "anyway, you were taking a little while so i already unpacked. hope ya don't mind."_

" _Of course not."_

 _Frisk had sat there for what felt like forever, but in a good way, talking about everything and nothing; this and that. There were no awkward moments. It had been busy, and Frisk hadn't been able to hang out with her friends for a few weeks, so she was ecstatic to be told everything that had happened. Politics and all the city's dealings weren't his favorite things to discuss since he would always toss out those sections of Ebott's paper, but he never stopped or interrupted Frisk when she talks about it. In fact, he almost seemed interested. It never failed, their conversations always turned into a joke fest and puns flew back and forth to see who could win this time. So far Frisk had only won one year, and she was sure it was because he had let her win._

 _Frisk exhaled and extended her legs and stretched. The massive meal was cleaned out between them and Frisk felt like she was going to explode._

" _did ya eat too much again?"_

" _What? Me? Of course not." Frisk said and looked over at him from the corner of her eyes and pushed herself up from where she had been leaning on the palms of her hands and stared at him and met with his knowing smirk. "… okay maybe a little." She admitted with a small laugh._

" _i can see right through ya." He had said, placing a hand on her head and Frisk tried to brush his hand away when he ruffled her hair._

 _Both froze and gazes locked. For the first time, Frisk wanted to look away from her best friend. His hand moved down to her cheek, the tips of his bony fingers gently skirting against her skin. Usually, Frisk had a quip for everything; some way to turn a tense or otherwise abnormal situation into a funny one. It was one of the ways that she tried to practice her pun game, but her mind was wiped blank. His fingers continued until he was cupping her face. Frisk watched her friend's face trying to search for an explanation. Something;_ anything _to put the puzzle pieces together of what the hell was going on. A thumb rested on her bottom lip utterly freezing Frisk in her place. The bony thumb brushed along her lip and pulled away, turning to reveal a red mark starkly contrasting against the ivory of his bones._

" _you're still messy even after all these years." Frisk parted her lips to speak but stopped when Sans put his thumb to his mouth and Frisk could see the blue tongue dart between his bony lips to swipe away the ketchup that had been just a few moments ago resting on her lip. Wanting desperately to hide the blush on her cheeks, Frisk smacked her friend on the shoulder and rolled her eyes._

" _Geez… weirdo." Frisk chuckled and looked away, touching her lip. When she looked back at him, she felt the chilled texture of his bony fingers in her hair, brushing some out of her face. It was something he had done for years. As a child, she hadn't brushed her hair a lot since she was always outside playing in the leaves and climbing trees. So, whenever Sans was with her, Frisk found he was always brushing some hair away from her face, so she could see where she was going. This though… this was different. Frisk couldn't describe how, but… it just was. The way he was watching her, the smirk on his face, Frisk was unsure what to do._

" _frisk."_

 _Frisk._

"Frisk?"

The girl blinked and looked around. She looked and saw that Jason was watching her with a concerned look on his face. Her brows furrowed, and she looked down at the space between them. What the hell was with that?

 _Get it together._

"Sorry… I just kinda spaced." Frisk said, honestly unsure if she was telling the truth or not. It had felt so real, almost like she had traveled back in time to that moment. She hated herself for letting that memory surface from a touch from her boyfriend. The touch wasn't even that similar. She smiled at Jason's worried face. "Don't worry, I'm fine." She assured.

"I'm glad that you're feeling better. I was really worried when I found you outside a little way away from the jail."

"Oh…" Frisk furrowed her brows, remembering how she had gotten her friends out of jail and how sick she had felt on the way out. How it had felt like her insides were liquifying and expelling themselves from her mouth. Honestly when Frisk's eyes had closed, she thought that she was going to die there. "Thanks for helping me, Jason."

"I was worried about you, you know." Jason said flinching when his fingers were in her hair, brushing some away from her face. "You've been out for almost five days."

"W-Wait, what?" Frisk's face paled.

"I called a doctor here… but… they were scared to move you since you were so pale. On top of that, she checked your vitals and they were stable… so she suggested you just sleep it off. I didn't tell her that I found you collapsed in your own puke…." Jason murmured. "I knew if you woke up in a hospital you'd probably stab me. Maybe I should've though, at least I wouldn't have been hit with a bat."

"Oh!" Frisk began and gestured around her. "That reminds me… I haven't seen this room before. What is this room?"

"… This was Alondra's room."

"Your sister…?" Frisk asked. When they first started dating, Frisk had found a picture that had fallen out of Jason's wallet when he was paying for a game at the fair. It was him and a younger girl. They looked to be about four years apart and Jason had a bright smile on his face. The girl, oddly enough, had kind of reminded Frisk of the way she looked at that young age; blue eyes, bright smile, brown hair and an obvious zest for life. When it had come to his attention that the picture had fallen out of his wallet, he was almost obsessively frantic in trying to find it. He had snatched the photo from her with such ferocity, that she thought he had ripped it in half.

"Yeah…" After he had cooled down, Jason had informed her that Alondra was his pride and joy, his younger sister who he loved more than anyone else in the whole entire world. They did everything together. He helped her with homework, read her to sleep, made her food, would take her to the park and the library. She loved to read he had told her. When they were heading back home from the library when his pride and joy had been killed. It had been about nine months since the monsters had been rescued from the Underground. In those days, crime had been unchecked and difficult to maintain as there was no way to document the monsters who were involved; _mostly_ as innocent bystanders. One of the monsters had been shot by a human. Alondra had run to go and try to help. From what Jason had said, she was always trying to help everyone. Unfortunately, as Alondra ran to help, the shooter pierced her leg with a bullet. When the young girl collapsed to the ground in the middle of the road, the car didn't have time to stop and hit her full force. Alondra and the shot monster had been rushed to the hospital, but by the time Alondra had arrived she had died from her wounds. The monster had been able to be patched up and was released about a month later.

It dawned on Frisk that she may made a terrible mistake. She was in Alondra's room. She had grabbed things and thrown them at Jason and they had both broke. She hesitantly looked over at Jason to gauge his reaction. Anything that had to do with Alondra, he became obsessive over. Thankfully, he didn't seem distraught about it.  
"They're my cousins. After…" Jason trailed off for a few moments, "my cousin stayed in here and left some of her things…"

"I see… I'm still sorry I broke them. Hey, I'll help cl—" Frisk heard a tune coming from somewhere in the room. She blinked and looked around, it was her phone. She patted her pockets and her butt pockets. On the nightstand by the bed, she saw the phone hooked up to a plug in the wall; the only modern thing in the museum of a room. She went and grabbed it, apologizing to Jason. A bright smile erupted on her face when she read the name on the screen. She quickly answered it and pressed the phone to her ear, desperate to hear the voice.

"Hey!" Frisk exclaimed, her face lighting up the most it has in what felt like forever.

"Frisk, My Child. How—"

"Howdy, Pumpkin!" Frisk smiled hearing her father interject.

"Mom… Dad…" Frisk said. Hearing their voices was the exact thing she needed to keep her grounded to earth. Everything had been so difficult lately and so confusing that their voices were a breath of normalcy. She wondered if they knew anything about what had happened here but didn't want to ruin this happiness if they didn't. "How's everything going? How is the cruise?"

"It was beautiful." Toriel said and exhaled. "It was exactly what we needed."

"I'm _so_ glad to hear that." Frisk said. She loved it when her parents were happy. It had taken them a long time to get along again, and even longer to fall back in love again. Hearing the happiness in their voices set her soul at ease and made her even more determined to solve everything. "So when will you guys be back?" Frisk was almost 21 years old, but she still missed her parents, especially with everything that happened. She _really_ could go for a great big hug, a piece of pie, and a cup of tea.

"We're actually on our way back now, My Child."

"Really?!" Frisk said almost jumping for joy at the news.

"Yeah! Really!" Her father shouted from behind Toriel.

"How about I make you a pie when we get back home?" Toriel asked. "Would you like that Frisk?"

"Yeah… Yeah I'd love that."

"Alright My Child. We're getting back on the road. We'll be there soon."

"Alright. I'll see you soon."

"Your father and I love you very much Frisk."

Frisk smiled and felt tears fill her eyes.  
"I love you guys too. Bye."

When Frisk was sure that the call was disconnected, she hung up her phone and looked at Jason. Without saying anything, he nodded and waved his hand as if telling her that she better get moving so she could catch her parents when they got home. She nodded with a smile and turned around and jogged down the steps and left the house. Frisk stopped fast as soon as she left the house. She had been asleep for five days. What the hell had happened in five days? She desperately wanted to find out, but at the same time, she wanted to make sure she got to see her parents as they were coming home. She glanced down at her clothes. They were not the same clothes that she had been wearing. A little embarrassed that she was stripped down, but also thankful because it would've been awkward to see a young woman running around with dried vomit stains on her clothing.

She ran towards the outer part of the city towards the entrance of the thinner part of the forest. The gentle trickling of water became louder and louder the closer that she got to her home. The cottage was like a beacon of hope and peace in these trouble times. Her parents weren't home yet either. It would give her the opportunity to get things cleaned up a little. It wasn't like there was a complete mess, but there were a few dishes, a couple jackets strewn here and there. While the cottage wasn't a pristine museum by any means, Toriel would lecture her like she was 9 again if she left dishes and her clothes out. Frisk reached down to the walking stone closest to the house and grabbed the spare key and unlocked the door.

The house was on the smaller average side, but it was the perfect fit for the three of them. She closed the door behind her and began to gather the articles of clothes that she had lazily thrown around and carry them to the laundry room. Frisk started on the dishes that she had left to do for later. She was terrible at making meals for herself, so it was just about ten dishes all together from the month and some change that they had been gone. She had a habit of either going out to eat or going to Grillby's. While she tried to keep a positive mindset while cleaning, she couldn't stop her brain from wandering to what had happened at City Hall, how Sans was in jail, how sad they all had looked, the confrontation she had had with the Judge, and most importantly… the person that corrupted the footage trying to frame the monsters. Frisk shook her head and wiped her hands on the shorts she was wearing. A quick once over satisfied her enough that she picked up after herself nicely. In her room, Frisk stripped off the clothes—most likely Jason's—and went to her closet to quickly get dressed. She chose a pair of sweatpants and a tank top and quickly dressed. Frisk had just pulled the shirt over her abdomen when she heard a car pulling up outside.

Frisk ran outside of her room and down the stairs, stumbling on the last stair and almost falling. The door opened, and she ran into her mother's arms and hugged her tightly, burying her face in the fabric of her dress.

"Frisk are you alright My Child?" Toriel asked, rubbing Frisk's back when she felt the tremors of her daughter starting to cry.

Asgore looked at his daughter and frowned, patting her head which made her look up.  
"Hey, no crying now. C'mon. Let's go in the kitchen and I'll make us all some tea."

Frisk didn't want to seem like she couldn't take care of herself and that she was unable to be left by herself. After all, her parents were adults and they wanted time of their own. Honestly, she didn't think it would've gotten to her so much if it hadn't been for everything that had happened recently. Once Frisk had gotten the cups from the cupboard, she felt her father smoothing her hair in a loving manner.

"We left you for a longer time than we should've." Asgore said and smiled. "I'm sorry, Frisk."

"No, Dad… It's just—"

"Frisk. Do not lie to me." Asgore said softly making Frisk tear up more. She so badly wanted to tell her father what had happened, how much of a failure she felt like, but she kept her mouth shut. "Sometimes we forget that we're still needed as you've grown up to be such a responsible young woman."

"…Thanks Dad."

Together, they got the cups of tea prepared and went back to the living room where she sat on the couch. Frisk handed the cup to her mother and smiled brightly. She took a small sip and looked at her.

"Your birthday is coming up soon, Frisk."

"Oh, it is?" Frisk blinked. To be honest, it hadn't been on her priority list lately and she tended to forget it. "I haven't even noticed."

"What do you want kiddo?" Asgore asked, taking a deep drink of his tea. Frisk always wondered how he could do that and not be worried about the boiling heat of the tea. If she did that, she'd burn her insides.

"Oh, you don't have to get me anything. I really haven't even thought of it."

"Surely there is something you want, is there not?"

Frisk leaned back and looked up at the ceiling. She racked her brain for something that she could want. She knew that her parents would work the hardest that they could to get her what she wanted. Frisk closed her eyes and smiled.

"I just want us to have a party here."

"That doesn't count." Asgore said. "But of course, we'll have a party here for you."

"Really, there isn't anything that I can think of that I—"

" _frisk."_

"want…" Frisk trailed off and cleared her throat and looked up and shrugged her shoulders. Frisk drank a little bit more of her tea and exhaled, relaxing on the couch. This was the peace that she wanted. At this moment, she didn't have to worry about anything.

"So, Frisk, what happened while we were gone?"

Flashes of gunshots, blood, and dust filled her mind. Frisk smiled at her father and leaned her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. The view of the incident at City Hall played over and over behind her lids. How terrified she had been getting the proof she needed, how terrified she had been for her friends and how relieved she had felt when they had been released. Her eyes shot open, not wanting to see the memory anymore. The others—while less than a week was not _nearly_ enough time to heal—to Frisk who had been sleeping for five days, it felt like it had just happened.

"Not much. I spent some time at the office, I spent some time with my friends, and ate at Grillby's. You know, the usual."

"How is Sans doing?" Toriel asked.

"He's… He's doing well." Frisk said.

"Honey, Frisk, are you finished with your tea?"

"Yeah. Here Mom, I'll help clean up."

"Would you like to help make the pie as well, I know you have missed it. I'll make your favorite."

Frisk and Toriel worked for a couple hours making the butterscotch cinnamon pie from scratch. It was a little pricey to make since they did do it from scratch every time, but it was worth it because the taste was the best thing that Frisk had ever tasted. All of Toriel's pies were her favorite desserts. Even Toriel's snail pie she had grown to love. Odd for everyone else, and a lot of her friends didn't even like the _idea_ of snail pie, but that just meant more for her. Once the pie had cooled and Frisk had done the dishes for her mother, she cut slices of the pie and gave them to her parents and sat between them.

"Let's watch some TV." Asgore said.

"Do not talk with your mouth full. You'll set a bad example for our child."

"Frisk is an adult, Dear." Asgore shut up when Toriel looked in his direction and Frisk smiled with her fork in her mouth. She liked the idea that no matter what age she was, her mother would always consider her to be her baby. Before she went to the Underground-…

 _No._ _Absolutely not. Never._

Frisk shivered just thinking about it. She shook her head and looked at them.

"How about we watch a movie?"

"Oh! Home movies!" Asgore exclaimed and before Toriel or Frisk could say anything, he retreated upstairs and came back with three boxes of home videos. During Frisk's childhood, she remembered Asgore always with a camera in his hand, wanting to document everything that she did and everything they had done as a family. To be honest, Frisk could watch one every day for the rest of her life and she wasn't sure that she'd be able to get to see them all. After what happened with… Chara and Asriel… she could understand why Toriel and Asgore wanted to document everything and truth be told, she wanted to have those memories too—it was something she had never had before. Truly, Frisk was so thankful that she had been able to meet them, and they were in each other's life… To Frisk, they filled the hole each other had in their hearts, becoming one full, happy and loving unit.

Toriel and Frisk exchanged a smile and shrugged. She went to the kitchen to get everyone another cup of tea while Asgore sifted through the many boxes of videos. By the time Frisk had returned to her spot and folded her legs on the couch, Asgore had finally picked one. He eagerly popped in the video and took a seat on the couch.

 _The sun was shining, the birds were singing, the winter flowers were blooming. Days like that… they were one of her favorites. A smaller version of Frisk still rocking her oversized sweater was playing in the snow making snow angels. Frisk smiled, it was a painful and yet fond smile. Everyone was there. Before things had gotten stressful and work had taken up most of Frisk's life, they were always together at times like this. Papyrus and Undyne were making a snowman._

" _NO! HE CANNOT WEAR THIS OUTFIT! IT'S CLASHING!" Papyrus had exclaimed._

" _What does it matter?" Undyne had asked, wrapping a scarf around the snowman._

" _PFFT! PFFT! WHAT DOES IT MATTER?!" Papyrus had retorted gasping. "CLEARLY YOU KNOW NOTHING OF SNOWMEN. IF YOU BUILD ONE, IT HAS TO BE FASHIONABLE. AND THIS OUTFIT IS TERRIBLE!"_

" _HE'S RIGHT FISH LADY." Mettaton had chimed in, flipping his metallic hair. "THIS SNOWMAN CANNOT BE CAUGHT DEAD LIKE THIS."_

 _Undyne chuckled and threw her hands up in defeat and smiled, leaning against one of the trees that had lost all its leaves by this time._

" _Then_ you _dress him."_

" _WITH A DISTURBING AMOUNT OF PLEASURE!" Papyrus said._

 _Frisk had peeked her head out of the snow fort she had been building with Muffet. With each movement she made, the snow crunched beneath her. Her cheeks and nose were red, but it didn't seem to bother nine-year-old her. She crawled over to where the snowman was and took off her mittens and was about to put them on the snowman when Toriel came rushing in frame with her hat and snowsuit on. She shook her head and bent down._

" _Keep your mittens on, Frisk."_

" _But_ Mom, _we have to dress a snowman."_

 _Next to her, Sans had clicked his tongue and took off his mittens and slipped them onto the snowman's hands. Frisk had turned towards Sans and smiled brightly._

" _now put your mittens back on." Sans said and shoved his hands back in his pockets. Frisk did as she was told and slipped them back on her already freezing hands and proceeded to take off her scarf. "you're a terrible listener."_

" _No, I'm not, my mittens_ are _on. See?" Frisk said, pointedly wiggling her fingers and sticking out her tongue. Asgore chuckled behind the camera and it moved in an up and down shrugging motion._

" _She's got you there."_

" _. . ." Sans sighed and watched as Frisk put her scarf around the snowman's neck and nodded clearly proud with her contribution. "you're such a pain kid." Sans unwrapped the scarf from around his neck and bent down and wrapped it around hers, small puffs of air generating between them. Sans stood to his full height and rubbed her hat, ruffling her hair beneath it._

" _Hey!" Frisk exclaimed and brushed some hair from her face. "Watch it."_

" _then listen."_

 _Mettaton went over to the snowman._

" _I CAN'T CONTRIBUTE MUCH, BUT HE'LL STILL BE FASHIONABLE EITHER WAY!" He took off the necklace he had been wearing and wrapped it around the snowman's neck._

" _My turn." Undyne said and stuck a spear in the ground by his hand and moved it so it looked like the snowman was holding onto it._

" _Ooh~ I wanna help!" Muffet went over to the snowman and undid the bows from her hair and stuck it into the snow on the snowman._

 _Napstablook silently went to the snowman and wrapped a pair of his headphones around his neck, nestling it into the scarf to make sure it stayed in place. Alphys took off her boots and stuck them in the snow so it looked like the snowman was sitting down with his feet out. Papyrus went and put sunglasses on the snowman._

" _PERFECT! NOW HE'S A COOL DUDE!"_

" _Let's all get into frame with him." Asgore said. "Tori hold this for me." The camera switched to where Asgore was helping Frisk get into the tree near the snowman while the others gathered around the trunk. He took back the camera and motioned for Toriel to go. Toriel shook her head._

" _Let us just have them in this frame, Gorey."_

 _Nine-year-old Frisk smiled holding up two V symbols while Toriel took out a camera and stood next to Asgore and snapped a photo of the scene. Frisk swayed in the tree and fell face first into the snow bank._

" _Frisk!" A collective sound sounded from all the monsters. Asgore and Toriel ran to where their daughter was at just as she rose her head up and shook the snow from her hair._

" _I'm okay!" She said and smiled, one of her front teeth missing._

" _FRISK! WHERE DID YOUR TOOTH GO?" Papyrus exclaimed._

" _Huh?" Frisk stuck her tongue where the tooth was and gasped. "I lost a tooth!"_

" _Oh no! Are you alright Frisk?" Toriel asked, kneeling by her daughter._

" _I lost a tooth! Quick! Help me find it!"_

" _ARE YOU GOING TO STICK IT BACK IN?!" Papyrus asked, all the monsters curious as to what would happen with a human child's lost tooth._

" _No Paps!" Frisk exclaimed sifting through the snow. "If I find it, I'll give it to the Tooth Fairy and get money!" Every so often Frisk would whistle unintentionally from the gap of her now missing tooth._

" _MONEY FOR A TOOTH?"_

" _Yes! For baby teeth!" Frisk exclaimed. "Help me!"_

 _One after another, the monsters began helping Frisk to find her tooth._

" _I found it!" Frisk exclaimed, holding up her tooth in triumph._

Either the camera died or Asgore had turned it off because that's where the video had ended. Frisk wanted to crawl under a rock and die. She was so embarrassed on how much of a weird child she had been.

"That's how we learned of the Tooth Fairy." Asgore stated.

Throughout the night, they watched a couple more home videos. Although they were simpler things, like Frisk's first time trying Toriel's snail pie. The first time that Frisk was picked up from middle school. The first time that Frisk got into a fight with another student. They had called her friends freaks and… Frisk punched them. Square in the face.

By the time they were done, it was two am. Toriel and Asgore had went to bed and Frisk had cleaned up. Frisk was scrubbing an already clean plate and she couldn't help but feel Grillby's spirit enter her since she was feeling him on a spiritual level. Before her parents had went to bed, Toriel said that she would end up calling Rebekah tomorrow and seeing if she wanted to go shopping. Frisk was wracking her brain, trying to think of something, _anything_ to be able to prolong them knowing. There wouldn't be any way to prevent them from knowing after a long time of them being, but they had just gotten home and tonight, they had had a good night. Frisk didn't want that to end so early, but at the same time it felt wrong to keep them in the dark about it. After all, this… was an extreme thing. Frisk exhaled and put the plate in the dish rack to dry. She needed to take a walk. Just go somewhere. On her way out, she had grabbed a hoodie and left, taking her key and locking the door behind her.

The temperature was dropping the longer Frisk was outside. The clouds of air were increasing in size. Yet, her feet wouldn't bring her back home. They took her to Grillby's. Surely, she would be able to talk to Grillby about this and he would be able to talk some sense into this whole situation and let her think clearly and logically. Also eager to get inside, she gripped onto the door and pushed with her might and slammed into the door. She furrowed her brows and tried the door; locked. Grillby's was supposed to be open until four am tonight. Frisk moved and tried to peek inside. If Grillby was in there, he would let her in and he'd listen. However, tonight… there was no Grillby. A piece of paper barely noticeable in the dark of the night caught her eyes. She squinted to try and see but ended up fishing her phone out of her pocket and turning the flashlight on.

 _New Hours_

 _Sunday: 10 am – 1 pm_

 _Monday: 6 am – 2 pm_

 _Tuesday: Closed_

 _Wednesday: Closed_

 _Thursday: 6 am – 2 pm_

 _Friday: Closed_

 _Saturday: 8 am – 12 pm_

 _Thank you for your continued patronage,_

 _-Grillby_

Frisk furrowed her brows. There was no way in hell Grillby would be able to make any profit from these hours. She was well aware of the business finances of her friend; she had handled most of the paperwork to acquire the licenses for his bar. Grillby would be breaking even, if he was lucky. What the hell had happened in the time that she had been asleep? More importantly, what had happened to her friends. Standing there wasn't going to get her anywhere and the door sure as hell wasn't going to open. Rubbing her hands together she turned and left with an eerie feeling pricking at her brain.

Frisk looked around nervously and reached up to knock on the door, but hesitated. She bit her lip and took another look around. Surely, she had to be a little bit crazy. She already knew that this wasn't going to end well, but she didn't know what else to do. She knocked on the door and shoved her hands in her pockets and bounced on her soles. No one answered. Frisk rocked back and forth and gritted her teeth together before knocking again; harder. Again, no one came at the knock. The feeling of worry was replaced by fear and she reached up and pounded on the door once before the door opened and she almost fell forward. The person looking at her was leaning against the doorframe with their arms folded and legs crossed at the ankles.

"… I need to talk to you." Frisk said. "I need your help."

"really? this is rich." Sans smirked in front of her, but there was no humor in his smile.

"… Please, can I come in?" Frisk asked, taking a step towards the entrance, but a little too fast for comfort, his arm darted out and blocked the doorway and by extension, her entrance to warmth and a place of comfort. "…"

"…"

"Sans… please…"

"look kid, whatever you're selling, i'm not interested." Sans backed up and was about to close the door and effectively cutting off the rest of their conversation.

"Please! I need you Sans!" Frisk exclaimed, balling up her mitten covered hands. Frisk dared a look up. Sans hadn't closed the door, but he hadn't moved either. "… Please." Her head fell, and she heard the sound of the door closing, tears gathering in her eyes."

"talk." He demanded.

"Sans… I…" Frisk wanted to cry. To hug her once best friend and have him comfort her. She wanted to go sit on the coin filled couch and watch TV together. She wanted nothing more than to just… just take back everything that she had done or said against him. Part of her hated him; she hated that he had this ability to make her feel this guilty. She hated that Sans had cared for her all these years and made her so dependent on him.

"if you're just gonna whine and cry, i'm going back inside. i'm tired."

His biting words were colder than the temperature and stabbed her right through her heart. If the situation hadn't been enough to make her cry, then his words were enough. Her eyes glazed over with tears, but she didn't want to test his threat.

"… I need you to try and figure out how to keep everything from Mom and Dad for as long as possible."

"what makes you think i know how to do that?"

"You've kept Papyrus innocent all these years. Please… I don't know what to do."

Silence fell between them. Sans' face was unreadable, and it terrified her.

"why should i do this for you?"

"… You shouldn't." Frisk admitted. "But… do it for Mom and Dad. Mom wants to go shopping with Rebekah tomorrow…"

"honestly kid, i can't think of anything." Sans admitted and folded his arms. "tori and asgore are important figures… even if i figure out some way to keep everything from them, they'd end up finding out."

"I should've known better than to come here." Frisk said, balling up her fists and looking down at the ground beneath them. "Why don't you stop being so lazy and actually get up and do something?! Help someone for once!" She screamed loud enough to where her voice echoed. "I'm doing everything! Just… Just forget it. I won't bother you with these matters anymore, or at all… Unless I absolutely have to." She said, turning away and starting to walk away.

Frisk had barely taken two steps when her hoodie was tugged so harsh, she almost fell. With a harsh _thud,_ her back slammed against the wall of his home. Her eyes widened, and she had tried to move but hands were slammed on either side of her head, making Frisk flinch. She felt about two inches tall. When Frisk looked up, to say she was terrified would be an understatement. Sans had never put her in this position, he had never looked at her like this before.

". . . you're trying?" Sans asked. Frisk didn't answer. "you're doing _everything_?"

"I—"

"tell me… what have you done except make our lives _hell_?!" Sans yelled at Frisk making her shrink into the wall behind her.

"I got you guys out of the Underground!" Frisk said, trying to take back some of this conversation, but her voice was small; almost as small of a squeak as the mouse in the holes at various points in the Underground.

"how long are you planning on resting on those laurels?" Sans scoffed.

"… What did you just say?"

"you heard me." Sans said, his voice dipping to a terrifying low octave.

"I'm doing everything I can!"

"i can see that." Sans said. "do you have any idea what you've done? what your _kind_ has done?"

"Sans… what are you talking about?"

"… do me, and every other monster a favor, and leave us alone."

"Leave you alone?" Frisk asked, their faces a few inches apart from each other. "How can you just say that to me?! You guys are my best friends! You are—you guys are my _everything_!"

The deep hollow holes that had been Sans' eyes dissipated and his pupils returned. His eyes roamed over her face. Frisk wasn't in the clear, just because his eyes weren't hollow depths of despair didn't mean he hated her any less. Something however had cleared, almost like something that was possessing him had left.

"your everything?" His voice had fallen to nothing more than a whisper.

"Yes." Frisk said, looking up at him; her tone matching his. Sometime during their argument, their faces had gotten close enough to where the small puffs of cold air exhaled intermingled between each other. Frisk's eyes looked over his face and a deafening silence fell between them. She started to feel light headed and she wondered if it had something to do with their proximity or if it was because she might pass out because she was doing nothing but breathing in his carbon dioxide. "My everything…"

* * *

 _Author's Note_ : So I really hope you liked this chapter. I enjoyed writing it and it's one of my favorite ones. I hope once again that you enjoy it and let me know what you think. Thank you. Have a good day/night.


	13. Failure

To say he was mystified would be an understatement. All his bridled anger and resentment dwindled down from a raging fire to a soft ember while he gazed at her. Time seemed to slow as neither of them moved. The only indicator that time had passed at all was the continuous smoky breath between them and even that had diminished. No words were spoken, yet at the same time, everything was. Her eyes held him; frozen. To many, it would be a treat to be this close to her. To him however, it was a punishment. A cruel one at that; to be standing here forced—yes, forced; _compelled_ even—to look at every _inch_ of her face.

Blue eyes stared at him, piercing through. Her dark eyelashes were clumped together no doubt from the cold latching onto the tears that had wet them mere minutes ago which was even more evident by the pink, puffy lining around her eyes. Her brown hair, although messy still retained the shining look it always had. Offhandedly, he found himself wondering what had made her hair tousled the way it was. Sans' eyes traveled down and lingered on her lips; pink and delicate. The puffs of breath came at a faster pace when her lips parted, but nothing came out. By the time his eyes trailed up to her eyes again, her cheeks and nose were red. Even still, while Sans was memorizing every minute detail of her, she didn't look away. In fact, her eyes remained even more trained on him.

Glancing back down at her lips, he leaned down closing the already short distance between. Out of the corner of his socket, he saw her breathing coming at a quicker pace, small goosebumps that had risen on her jawline. She tilted her head back slightly and closed her blue eyes. His cheek bone brushed ever so softly against her cheek, Sans stopped when Frisk gulped down some air in response. Sans hadn't meant to make contact. It had been a long time since any gestures were made. The last time her skin had touched him was in Grillby's where she had smacked him in front of everyone. Before it could rise to the surface more, he pushed the thoughts and screams from his mind away.

"leave." Sans whispered. Her breathing had stopped short and he stood up to his full height.

"W-What?" Frisk's eyes opened, and she blinked, Sans watched the glazed film disappear from her eyes.

"go." Sans jutted his chin towards the opposite way towards the outskirts of town, also marking the way back to her home.

"Sans, I don't understand." Frisk began. "Please just—"

"go."

Sans watched Frisk deflate and her shoulders slump. He dug his hands deeper into his pockets and raised a brow bone. Her lips parted repeatedly, her mind trying to find some way to respond to his biting words. He watched her hands fall to her sides and exhaled sticking her hands into her pockets. The hanging of Frisk's head signified her defeat. The young woman's steps were heavy when she passed him heading down the path he had previously outlined. When Frisk was a clean enough distance away, without even realizing he had done it until after, he spoke,

"your kind are the _real_ monsters."

From his peripheral vision, he saw Frisk stop a good distance away and turn back to face him. Between them crystallized white stars fell onto the ground below. One at a time, then two, until it was a steady curtain of white. Sans saw her lips move, but if she had said anything he hadn't caught it. Convincing himself he wasn't curious and even more so that he didn't care, he headed back into his house and closed the door making sure to lock it. During these hard times, you couldn't be too careful.

Sans looked around the house that was once bright and so full of life. All it contained was a dark and dismal air. The home didn't even look like the same home he had so many fond memories in. The only light in the home was from the parted curtains letting in the moonlight to shine onto the kitchen table. He leaned against the fridge door and ran a hand down his face. Even without the brightness of the kitchen light, the sight was burned into his cranium. Figures upon figures, more negatives than positives, and an embarrassing amount of red and yellow covered the wooden table. When Sans opened the fridge door to grab himself a bottle of water, he reached around to find it, trying to see in the dark of the unlit fridge.

 _i'm so sorry paps… i failed._

In the dark of the night, Sans twirled the thought of his failures over and over. The bills covering the table, the darkened space where the microwave and stove clocks were, and the unlit fridge were grim reminders of how much he had failed. Thankfully before the proof of his failure came to light, he had convinced Papyrus that an overnight cooking lesson with Grillby would be a good learning opportunity. Grillby had done so much for him already, as a failure, Sans didn't deserve a friend like him. He wanted Papyrus to stay with a friend until he could fix his failures, but he didn't want to burden his friends. Even more so, he had to figure it out before Papyrus came home in a couple days or he would be forced to show his little brother what a terrible brother he had. Sans practically fell into the kitchen table and looked at the bright red paper.

"1500 g. where am i supposed to get that kind of money?"

It felt better to talk it out, even if it was to himself. However, it wasn't enough to bring up his mood to an acceptable degree. He had already been stressed out since the events at City Hall and the jail he hadn't thought to check on the mail or consider the other bill other than the house they owned. So, when he made his way to the mailbox the previous day, he was shocked to see so much mail of varying colors. Already, he had found a couple other places that were cheaper where they'd be able to move and still afford food and enough for basic living expenses as there was no way he'd be able to gather the expected G they were now required to keep their home. He thought—at least—that they'd be able to pull through this month, but the wallet and the humans prevented such a luxury.

"what am i supposed to tell paps?"

How was he supposed to explain to Papyrus that in two days they'd have to leave the house they'd spent over ten years in? How was he supposed to respond to Papyrus' questions and concerns? The thought of Papyrus blaming him, or worse, being disappointed in him never left his mind. Gathering the bills littered across the oak surface he headed up to his room and slammed the door angry at his own incompetence. Over the passed few days, he had sold most of his belongings to keep food in the house and give a couple of _extremely_ small payments to the electric company to bide his time until he found something better and to just _beg_ for a few more hours. He had even gathered all the coinage in the couch to try and make a dent in the bills… Now he was just faced with the truth: he would not be able to provide for his brother any longer and he'd be forced to show the true colors of their situation. Unable to bear the wandering thoughts anymore, he shoved the collection of bills under a small pile of clothes in the corner and flopped on his makeshift bed of blankets. He closed his sockets and dug the heels of his hands into them, exhaling a shaking breath.

Sans grabbed two more fleece blankets and put them on his bed of blankets. It took him a long time to get cold, but Winter was starting and there was no heat, so he was freezing. Admitting that aloud would make him feel like even more of a failure, so he remained on the floor in his cocoon, trying not to let the feeling of dread fall down his face in a river of tears. When he found a comfortable and warm enough spot, his mind wandered towards the home he had his mind set on where him and Papyrus would live. It wondered to if his friends would be alright, if Tori and Asgore would be alright, and inadvertently wandered to Frisk. Toriel and Asgore would most likely be spared from the harshness pushed upon the monster because of their relationship to Frisk which was legally binding. The rest of them however, were merely friends and classified as monsters by the humans that had enforced these new rules. Sans hated how his thoughts went to her over the simplest things and forced all memory of her and this night out of his mind. He curled up and slept; his incessant smile morphed into an enduring frown.

Light filtered through the fibers of his blue curtains to rest on Sans' chilled bones. He wasn't really one for mornings, but he'd get up this early if it meant that he'd be able to have some warmth. In addition, the sun was high enough that he knew Grillby's would be open. He'd at least be able to relax somewhere where it was warm before he went and checked out the house he would probably end up getting a loan for or selling the other one and keeping the newer one. To be honest, he wasn't sure where the funds for the new house would be coming from other than the medium sum of savings he had accumulated over the years. Sans got up and quickly put his slippers on. With shaking fingers, he snapped, but landed just a few feet away. The small movement was enough to exhaust him completely. It was another thing to add to his ever-growing list of worries. His bills were piled up, the electric and water to their home had been shut off, they were going to lose their house, Grillby's… he was sure his friend wasn't going to make it either. He stuffed his hands deeper into his pockets and switched his slippers for sneakers, lazily sticking the laces into the sides so he wouldn't have to tie them. Taking into consideration how much his extremities were shaking, he wasn't sure he would've been able to tie them even if he wanted to.

The snow had continued through the night enough to reach his calves. Basketball shorts and snow didn't mix. He hadn't really had this problem before because he just used magic to get where he needed to go. Now that something was… holding—for lack of a better term—his magic, he was forced to trudge through the snow with each step stinging pain stabbing into his bones. In easier times, this would be the time of year to spend with each other. There would be smiles, laughs, and joy. Now all he felt—all _they_ felt was despair, misery, and grief. When the unlit sign of Grillby's came into view, a small part of him smiled. It would be good to get inside and relax a little; let off a little steam. The rest of the walk felt like it took forever as his legs were already buckling under the extreme cold from inside his house and the outside. Quickly, Sans opened the door and went inside.

What used to fill him with joy now only increased his sadness. While the inside of Grillby's was warm—even without the heat up, Grillby's own flame was enough to make it toasty during the late Autumn early Winter. It wasn't that Grillby's didn't have customers. It was the _amount_ and the _type._ In the whole entire bar, which was crowded as it had been before, only held two monsters excluding Grillby and himself. The rest was full to the brim with humans of varying shapes and sizes. All of them had one thing in common; they were all smug and cocky. The prickling on the vertebrae of his spine increased his discomfort when they all looked in his direction. Remaining in the background, just another person in the crowd was what he preferred. With the news coverage of the events at City Hall, he had gone from background to headliner in just a couple days. Not meeting the gaze of any seated humans, Sans weaved in and out of the tables and taking a seat on his usual spot.

"Sans." Grillby began, watching his friend's face. "Have you been sleeping?"

"yeah. of course." Sans said and gave a small chuckle that _he_ didn't even believe. "you know how i like to sleep." Back before everything happened, just before everything had happened he loved to sleep and just skirt by. Even after the first few years on the Surface he stayed in that mode. Humankind had been treating the monsters like _equals_ and now it was like they were backpaddling.

"… Right." Grillby said and smiled, slowly shining his glass.

"i can't stay long…" Sans murmured. "i just came by to talk to you a little, see how ya were doing."

"I'm… I'm doing alright."

"business is booming." Sans tried to be optimistic for his friend. He noticed that one of the humans glanced at Grillby who in turn had stopped shining his glass. For being a fire elemental with the head of pure flame, he could see Grillbs was exhausted.

"Yeah…" Sans raised a brow bone when Grillby stopped shining the glass and looked at him. "Are you hungry?"

"nah, i'm alright."

Grillby leaned on the edge of the bar and watched his friend rub a hand down his face. Sans hated being stared at, the gaze that Grillby had was a little ethereal in a way. He could see right through Sans, but that didn't mean that he was an open book either. One good thing about their relationship is that each would keep the other guessing.

"Sans… how long has it been since you've eaten?"

"what are you talking about campfire?" Sans jeered, trying to remain cheerful and aloof. However, he was just too exhausted, and his smile ended up fading.

"Don't lie to me." Grillby's voice was firm almost like an older brother. He wanted Sans and Papyrus to be taken care of and no one could even argue that. "How long?"

"really, it's no—"

"Sans. You and Papyrus are the only family I have. You've been like my brothers since we were young. You've been in my life more than you've been out of it. So, I know you." Grillby adjusted his glasses. "How long?"

"about five days." Sans admitted. The last meal he had consumed was the one prepared for him when he got out of jail. Before Sans could even open his mouth to speak again, Grillby had disappeared behind the door. If he had been human, Sans wouldn't have lasted as long as he did. He'd either be fighting for his life in the hospital or six feet under. Sans looked at the ticking clock on the wall. He had about thirty minutes before he had to go. He wasn't worried. He wasn't sure what Grillby did to make his food so fast and yet still amazingly cooked; no matter how much he asked, Grillbs wouldn't tell so he had just learned over the years to just shut up and accept it.

Within two minutes, a plate with a quadruple-pattied burger and a large heap of fries was sat in front of him. Had Sans not been so exhausted, the move of purity and devotement would have been enough to bring him to tears. Shakily, he took a bottle of ketchup and dumped some of it onto his plate. When he popped the first fry into his mouth, he had to fight back tears. Within seconds, Sans was forcing three to six fries in his mouth at one time and holding back tears all the while. It wasn't that he was embarrassed to cry in front of Grillby. During the couple centuries that they'd been alive, each of them had cried numerous times in front of each other; especially when they were children. He refused to cry in front of these _humans_. They'd take it as a form of weakness and find some way to use it against him.

"Sans… slow down."

He blinked and looked down at his half-cleaned plate. His eyes focused on the emptying plate and he closed his eyes to force back the tears. This wasn't how this was supposed to go. At all. Now that he was older, and they were on the Surface, he liked to be in control of his own destiny, try his hardest to make his brother's dreams come true and to hell with what he wanted. The only thing he truly wanted was for his brother to smile and be happy without tarnishing his innocence, and—

"sorry…" Sans murmured an apology. His next few bites were still desperate, but not as ravenous.

"You should be." Grillby said and sighed just as Sans took a big gulp of food. "… but not for that. You _should_ be sorry for not telling me."

Sans couldn't protest. He hated, absolutely _loathed_ anyone seeing him weak. Now he was forced to show that side in front of numerous humans; the very ones who caused it in the first place. After a quick peek at the clock on the wall, Sans sped up his eating. After the last fry, his gaze returned to Grillby's glasses. He cleared his throat and stood up; not wanting to dwell on his embarrassment.

"i gotta get going…" Sans murmured, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. "…thanks."

"It's no trouble Sans." Grillby smiled. "Papyrus insisted on staying at my house for something, but he should be coming home later."

"right." Sans said with a small smile.

Grillby grabbed onto the plate that had been cleaned off and went back to the kitchen. While his friend's back was turned, Sans dug deep into his pockets and pulled out every bit of money he had on his person. Trying to force the emotion welling in his throat, he pointedly counted the money. Sighing at his inadequacy, he placed the coins on the counter; eight whole G. A snicker from a nearby human made him curl into himself. Replacing his hands in his pockets, he turned on his heels and sped walked out of the establishment. When everything had settled down to a point where Sans didn't feel like dying would be a blessing, he felt would be an appropriate time to approach the subject of the extreme change in clientele of Grillby's. Jogging through the rising snow partly to raise his own temperature as well as to not be late, Sans made his way towards the inner part of the city.

The snow had fallen and covered the sidewalks which was now littered with footprints. The cars were slower than normal, no doubt to make sure there were no accidents because of the ice. Finally, Sans arrived at the entrance of one of the few overpasses leading into the central—and busiest—part of Ebott. A tall, lanky human with black hair and dark eyes was waiting for him. The human was leaning against one of the concrete pillars making up the overpass, picking at his teeth with a toothpick. Typical grungy, low-life human.

"You're late." The man said and raised an eyebrow at the skeleton monster. "Don't ya know how ta tell time?"

"… i'm only a minute late."

"A minute is a minute, Imma busy guy, got a lotta things to do. Ya get me?" The human switched the weight on his feet from left to right. "Since ya don't know how ta keep time, we ain't got nothing ta talk about." The man said and stood up and was about to walk away.

"wait! sorry…" Sans exclaimed and took a step towards him. He couldn't let this wretched and vile human get away from him. Even with the man's back turned, Sans could see the corners of his lips curling up into a smile just as dark and twisted as his own heart. He waited anxiously for the man to turn around. When the human finally _did_ turn around, he placed a small wrapped package in Sans' hand. "In the alleyway at the store on Mutuchek. Ya got twenty minutes. I'll meet you behind Rezo Inn."

When the sounds of the footsteps faded away, Sans clasped the package in his hand. He hated that man. Hated this situation. Hated _himself._ Exhaling, he took a quick look around before shoving the package into his shorts pocket. Twenty minutes was hardly enough time. If Sans was able to use his magic… he would've had this done in no time. But…  
Sans shook his head. He was wasting precious time in these stupid thoughts. Keeping to the shadows, he took every shortcut that he knew to get to Mutuchek Street. Seeing a monster on the grungy side of town really did nothing to raise the deteriorating public view of them, so he made sure to stay out of sight as much as possible.

Sidewalks cracked to the point where they'd pass for more mosaic pieces than parts of a road were what Sans was met with on Mutuchek Street. It was one of the smaller streets near the outer edges of the slum region in Ebott. Sans had never really given it any thought, but as there was only _one_ store on this street, it was highly probably that the shabby part was also the historical—as in it had been there since the Human and Monster War. Taking that into consideration, it was amazing in a small, and slightly disturbing way, that this had all remained standing after so many years. In the alleyway between the Book Store that Sans was almost positive wasn't operational anymore and an unidentifiable building, another unkempt human waited much in the same fashion as the other.

Sans had never really feared approaching humans before, but as of now, he was powerless. A sitting duck for any human that decided he was in a great need of some pain. He took a deep breath and crossed the distance to the human, tripping over one of the concrete mosaic pieces of the ancient stone sidewalk (or road, Sans wasn't sure), and came face to face with him.

"Well well well, A's got a new delivery animal, huh?"

 _animal?_

"Well? Ya got the stuff?"

Without saying anything, Sans reaching into his pocket and pulled the package out. Both hands, human and monster, reached out to receive product and payment respectively. The human smirked and stuffed the package into his coat pocket and then looked at Sans who shoved the huge roll of G bills into his pocket.

"Watch it monster. If A even finds _one_ G bill missing, you know what'll happen." The human smirked. "Get going. A doesn't like to be kept waiting."

Sans headed back to the richer part of town and towards the Rezo Inn. It was an inn on the very richest part of town which also paired of where people would stay who were special guests of the city. The Rezo Inn, over the years, had been the venue for many different occasions from weddings to funerals; birthdays and any other community occasion that could be thought of. He had always thought it weird that someone would want their _funeral_ to be at the Inn, but he didn't really have the right to question it. After all, monster kind did some strange things too. Thinking about all these things had thankfully made the time pass more quickly, but the sinking feeling of worry soaked his bones when the neon red of the Inn's sign shined on them. Giving small courteous nods and smiles in various directions to avoid suspicion, he quickly made his way to the rendezvous point.

"So, you're here." A said, stepping towards Sans when he had gone behind the establishment near the dumpsters. "Took ya long enough."

Sans placed the roll of G bills in A's outstretched hand.

"Hm. Not bad." A said, counting each of the bills in front of Sans.

"my pay?"

"Your what?"

"pay."

"You expect me ta pay ya after you were late?"

"A minute."

"Like I said, a minute is a minute. Imma very busy guy." Sans scoffed and folded his hands atop of skull. "Howeva, it's the holiday season innit? What kind of boss would I be if I didn't give my employee a holiday bonus?"

 _a normal human…_

The small light of hope was quickly dashed when A took a handful of coins and ignoring Sans' outstretched hand, tossed them to the ground between them in the snow and laughed. A walked passed Sans and bumped into his shoulder deliberately. Only when Sans was sure that A was completely out of sight and earshot did Sans get on his hands and knees to feel for the coins in the slush snow. Holding out the prize of his run, he was met with six one G coins. He slammed his outer fist full of coins against the nearby brick wall. He had risked his life for six G coins.

By the time that the sun had set, Sans had made a total of 20 G dollars. From shoveling snow to cleaning windows and picking up trash; he had done every small job that had been in the paper that day. Some people had blatantly said that they weren't going to pay a monster as much as a human, while others tried to make it seem like the job he had done was only worth mere coins. Either way, the amount he held in his hand didn't even put a dent in the amount he owed. Monster jobs were becoming more and more scarce and jobs that _had_ monsters employed already were suddenly finding reasons to fire them. However, the few places that didn't change at all were suddenly being flooded with applicants. Most of these places were small businesses and had not _nearly_ enough funds to go and hire all the monsters.

He came upon the darkened home and saw his brother coming towards the house where two humans in dark suits were standing. Blood turning cold and all worries for his current predicament out the window, he ran to meet his brother and clear the humans away from their front door before they met. Luck, though, wasn't on his side. When Sans cleared the small hill separating him from his home Papyrus was already talking to the two men with a confused look on his face.

"THAT CAN'T BE. SOMETHING'S WRONG." Papyrus was speaking, holding some sort of item in his hand. "HAVE YOU CHECKED YOUR GPS TO MAKE SURE THE ADDRESS IS RIGHT? ARE YOU SURE IT'S THE RIGHT SNOWDIN HOUSE?"

"… what's going on?"

The two men parted to show a note that had been taped on the door:

 _Immediate Eviction Notice_

"SEE WHAT I MEAN SANS? THESE MEN SAY THIS ISN'T OUR HOUSE ANYMORE. IT TOTALLY IS." Papyrus said. "OUR NAMES ARE ON THE MAILBOXES, SEE?"

"what? no. we were supposed to have until the end of the week." Sans protested, indirectly ignoring Papyrus' innocent protests.

"We were given orders to evict the Snowdin household immediately. You're ordered to leave the property and all items are to remain here."

"we…" Sans trailed off, unsure of what to say. "the end of…"

"Sorry sir, but orders are orders." One of the humans said and truly did look sorry for what they had done. The other human was agreeing with Papyrus that the names on the mailboxes were indeed theirs but was also trying to explain that that fact didn't solve everything. "This home now belongs to Ebott City."

"no, we… here." Sans protested lamely, fishing the 20 G dollars out of his pocket and holding it out to the humans with both hands; now shaking from the reality of their situation. "please… here." Sans tried to ignore the confused and sad faces that Papyrus was making. He didn't care what kind of person he looked like to the humans in front of him. He just didn't need this to happen. This _couldn't_ happen.

"Sir… we can't take this money. The decision is already made." One human said.

"here! take it! please!"

"Sir—"

Sans collapsed to the snow beneath them and looked at the miniscule amount of money in his hands. He closed his sockets and hung his head.

"… please." Sans begged in a small voice. " _please_."

One of the humans knelt by him and put a hand on his shoulder. The kind gesture made him look up from the G in his hand.

"We'll post this money as rent. With this amount, you'll have enough to at least get your belongings."

"We're truly sorry." The men apologized and took a key and unlocked the large industrial lock they had placed on the knob to prevent entry. "You'll have twenty minutes."

Most of the time inside of the dark home was gathering Papyrus' belongings. They had to leave all the furniture other than Papyrus' bed inside the home. The rest of the belongings were tied up in makeshift sheet suitcases and sat on top. There was so much more that Sans wanted to take, but the men had called time. The lock of the door felt so final, like another Barrier. The men apologized again before leaving.

Sans stared at the home. Already it looked so lonely and sad just sitting there by itself. Everything attached to it stayed. It hurt to see the rest of their belongings separated from them by nothing more than a glass window, yet by something that was so powerful. He closed his eyes and clenched his jaw. The silence of nighttime was so loud, and he couldn't even describe how much he wanted it all to end, how much he just wanted to die in that moment; how much of a failure he felt like.

The sudden crunch of the snow and a jingle shocked Sans enough to open his eyes. Papyrus had taken the wreath down from the door and put it on top of his bed where the rest of the belongings were. One by one, he picked up the mailboxes and placed him there as well. Seeing Sans' questioning look, Papyrus stood in front of him with a saddened look on his face. Without saying anything, he thrust a large envelope out to him.

"what's this paps?"

"YOU CAN'T OPEN IT YET!"

"… okay. so, when?"

"WHEN WE GET HOME OF COURSE!"

"…" Sans sighed and furrowed his brow bones. A quick look behind them, Sans and Papyrus left the only true home they've known since they left the Underground to the only place Sans could think of.

It was the first home that Sans had purchased upon arriving at the Surface. Back then, Sans hadn't known if they were going to be allowed to live in normal houses like the humans were, so he had earned just enough to purchase this house. Honestly, he never thought he'd be standing in front of it again and truth be told, he hoped that he never would've seen the house again. No one knew but him that he had this home. Now Papyrus of course. He had tried to sell it to make some extra money and keep their _actual_ home, but, no one wanted to buy it. He could see why.

The brick that the house was made from were cracked in some spots and off colored. He couldn't even tell what color the bricks were to begin with let alone what color they had washed out to be. The roof had been patched multiple times very crudely as many spots were off color and different patterns than the main roof itself. At one time, the house had had a chimney, but it was shattered now and only one strand of bricks remained. Truth be told, he didn't even know if it was functional anymore. The door had a screened portion before the main door which was newer than the rest of the house, well… it _had_ been screened at one time Sans was sure as little remnants of a screen could be seen if someone focused enough. The windows were smudged and gross looking stained and warped from various elements over the years. The small walkway to the door was just as cracked as the road leading to it, if not more so.

"WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE?" Papyrus asked.

"…" Sans frowned and pulled out a rusty key and turned the lock.

"OH! I SEE!" Papyrus exclaimed and took the mailboxes and slammed them through the ground. Offhandedly, he wondered if Papyrus passed all the way through the snow and into the dirt or if their mailboxes were going to fall when Spring came. Papyrus didn't seem to mind either way and quickly grabbed the wreath and hung it on the rusty nail that was jutting out of the warped door. "THERE! HOME!" He let out a deep exhale and pushed open the door and pulled at his bed and pulled it into the house.

The inside was a little better than the outside, but not by much. The two and a somewhat half roomed home's floors were warped and crooked and the wallpaper was torn in some spots and faded in others. The large room in the middle would end up being their kitchen, dining room, living room, and bedroom. The only secluded room was the bathroom and he'd have to get that working again somehow. Sans watched Papyrus set up all their belongings in various places in the house like they belonged there.

"LOOK SANS! A FIREPLACE!" Papyrus said and pointed to a very… _used_ fireplace.

"get unpacked and i'll fix it up." Sans said.

"OF COURSE!"

Sans went outside and wandered around, picking up branches and sticks of various shapes and sizes. Because of his arm span, he had to make four trips to get all the wood around the nearby area. He searched among the small number of belongings he had brought and found a magazine of his and some matches. He ripped a few pages of his magazine and tossed them and a few logs into the fireplace. When it was all cleaned and situated, he lit a half of a page of the magazine with a match and put it in the fire. Within a minute of poking, prodding, and blowing a comfortably warm fire was crackling.

The trek to the new house and all the excitement must have tired Papyrus out. By the time Sans had gotten the fire going to its full force, Papyrus had already been curled up in bed and had fallen asleep without his bedtime story. Sans smiled and watched his baby brother sleep so peacefully despite everything that had just happened. Was it just blissful ignorance? Or was he just _that_ positive?

The large envelope that Papyrus handed him back at the old house lay on the floor. Making sure not to wake Papyrus, he grabbed it and opened it. Inside, there was a group of papers covered in various colored macaroni noodles and crudely crayon drawings. On the front in big, blocky letters the words _'MY BROTHER SANS'_ were written. He raised a brow and opened the paper to see it was like a book of some sort. Each page had a crayon drawing of him and Papyrus doing various activities.

 _MY BROTHER SANS LIKES TO EAT MY COOKING_

 _MY BROTHER SANS LIKES POTATO CHIPS AND KETCHUP_

 _MY BROTHER SANS HAS A PET ROCK AND LEAVES SOCKS IN THE LIVING ROOM_

 _MY BROTHER SANS PLAGUES MY LIFE WITH INCIDENTAL MUSIC_

 _MY BROTHER SANS READS ME TO SLEEP EVERY NIGHT_

 _MY BROTHER SANS MAKES ME SMILE EVEN WHEN I DON'T WANT TO WITH HIS BAD JOKES_

Sans couldn't help but smile at each of the pictures. It was a painful smile that tugged on his soul, but he kept reading.

 _MY BROTHER SANS HAS A COOL DUDE FOR A BROTHER; PAPYRUS! (THAT'S ME!)_

On this page, Papyrus had drawn himself with glasses on and the words "cool dude" written in the space with a large black arrow pointing to him. Sans stopped and reread the line on the last page over and over.

 _EVEN THOUGH I AM VERY COOL, MY BROTHER SANS IS THE BEST BROTHER I COULD ASK FOR. HE'S THE BEST BROTHER EVER._

Sans looked at his sleeping brother and around the house. He closed the book and rested his head on his knee, clenching his jaw and feeling a couple tears fall down his face while he held onto the loving book Papyrus had made with dear life.


	14. Exodus

Soft exhaled whispers roused Frisk from her slumber. Blinking against the curtain haze beckoning her back to peaceful slumber, she turned over and studied the growing amount of light shining in the curtains. From its current position, it couldn't be 8 AM. Frisk got up and yawned, staggering to her door. Heading to the bathroom on the second floor, the previously unidentifiable sounds Frisk now recognized as her mother's soft weeping. Toriel _never_ cried. The only time that Frisk had heard her cry was when she bid her farewell back in the Underground sure that was going to be the last time they'd ever see each other. Passing the original destination of the bathroom, she tiptoed to the outside of her parents' room and listened in.

"Tori… please don't cry."

Frisk identified the groaning of the springs in the mattress. Asgore would always sit next to and comfort anyone who was crying. Someone as big as him couldn't stand to see anyone cry or even remotely upset. When Frisk was growing up, she kept remembering when Papyrus had called him a "big, fuzzy pushover" and had to hand it to Papyrus; the description was spot on. He was a big, fuzzy teddy bear who was always able to make people stop crying… except for now. Despite her husband's pleas, Toriel continued to cry—except harder, but still tried to keep it muffled most likely to not wake her.

"I… I thought I was good at it."

"Tori, you _are_."

"If I was, this wouldn't have happened, would it not?"

"Tori… something _has_ to be wrong. This isn't right."

"What about the children?"

Small affirmations of consolation did nothing to make Toriel stop her crying. Frisk bit her lip and hesitated at the doorknob. If she opened it, her parents would know that she had been eavesdropping. It wasn't a very honorable pastime, she knew. Yet, if she didn't catch the action happening and she asked her mother later if she had been crying, it would've been covered up to prevent her from worrying, which of course in turn would only make her worry more. Weighing her options, Frisk took a deep breath and turned the doorknob cracking the door.

"… Mom?" Frisk murmured. "Dad?"

"F-Frisk." Toriel said, her voice wavering despite her best efforts to cover it up. "Come in my child."

The inside of her parents' room was how it had been all her life on the Surface. It was cozy with a large bed at the center. A small desk decorated the corner with various odds and ends of varying significance littered about the surface. The blue pastel walls were decorated with pictures of different events throughout their time as a family. Toriel was sitting on the edge of her side of the bed, a forced smile on her loving face while Asgore sat next to her with an equally forced smile on his. Slowly, she walked into the room, wiggling her toes in the plush white carpet, eyes turned on it as well. When they first found the place, Frisk had wondered as a kid if they wanted a white carpet, so it wasn't obvious of how much fur they shed. Over the years, she learned that it was easier for her mother to decorate the way she wanted, but still liked the idea.

"Mom…?" Frisk asked, curling her toes. "Why were you crying?"

"Crying?" Toriel asked all the while, Frisk noticed she was making sure not to let any hint of sadness touch her face. "I wasn't crying."

Frisk looked from the carpet and looked at her parent's faces. Both forced smiles did nothing to hide the sadness and worry that was reflecting in their eyes. She took a step towards them and frowned, not fooled in the least bit.

"Mom… I heard you from my room." She admitted and then motioned to the spots around her eyes. "Your fur is wet here… Please Mom… I'm not a kid anymore." Of course, Frisk knew to them she would always be their kid. With the _huge_ age gap between the monsters and humans, it would be fair to act in such a way.

None of the company in the room spoke. A small human girl waited to rebuttal any excuse that her monster parents threw her way. Gazes locked and neither party backed down. Each wanted answers, but for different things. Frisk went over to her parents and knelt on the floor in front of them. She reached out and grabbed onto her mother's large paw and squeezed it reassuringly. It seemed to be all she needed because tears filled her large eyes before they fell down her face again.

"Oh, Frisk," Toriel began and used her other paw to pet her daughter's hair. "I got a call just before we went to bed."

"From who…?"

"The superintendent at the school."

"Yeah? What did he want?" Frisk asked, but inside, she was sure she already knew.

"I was told not to come back, that… that I am being replaced."

 _Mom…_

"You what?"

"I was fired… I am no longer a teacher."

Toriel started to cry again and Asgore hugged his wife. Frisk stood up and squeezed her mother's hand. It was all that Toriel had wanted to do and had worked for since they arrived at the Surface. She had wanted to be a teacher and see children smile and learn. For someone to take that away from her…? It was beyond forgiveness. Toriel always took care of the children like they were her own and did not discriminate on _any_ basis; gender, race, wealth, parents, or species. Many years, Toriel had been named the number one teacher at Ebott Academy. To up and take her livelihood away from her, she bet her mother felt like laying down and dying.

"I'll fix this Mom."

"No Frisk," Toriel said and looked at her daughter. "do not get involved."

"Mom—"

"Promise me, Frisk."

Frisk and Toriel stared at each other before Frisk sighed and shook her head.

"I can't."

"Tori, maybe Frisk can figure out what's happening."

"I don't want my daughter to get involved. I'm supposed to take care of _her._ "

"Mom… You _have_ taken care of me. _Both_ of you have." Frisk assured her. "If something went wrong, I have to look into it. I have to at least see _why,_ even if I can't fix it."

Frisk was about to leave to get dressed and head out when she was stopped by a warm grip from Toriel. When she turned and looked, her tears had stopped, and her gaze had turned from sad to worried.

"Frisk, my child. While I know I cannot stop you, please let me warn you; please do not get yourself into trouble." Toriel said softly.

"Frisk. Be careful… Something's… wrong." Asgore said, comforting his still saddened wife.

Frisk nodded and went to the door. Just as she went through it she sighed and looked down at the flooring.

"Mom… Dad…" Frisk began. "While I'm gone… check the internet for Ebott's news the past week."

Frisk got dressed all the while thinking about what had possessed the superintendent to right out fire Toriel. It could only be more bad news. It seemed like everything was happening one right after another. Usually she was able to get a hold on these situations, but… now it felt like everything was out of her grip and she was powerless. It was one of the worst feelings that she had ever known. Just as Frisk had picked a scarf from her closet, she heard a loud sob from her parent's room. She hung her head and exhaled shakily, knowing that Toriel was now aware of Rebekah's untimely demise. She swallowed the lump in her throat while her mother continued to mourn her deceased friend. Quickly swinging her scarf around her neck and putting on her boots at the door, Frisk exited her home and into the silence of the outside.

Frisk huddled into herself, shivering with a bite of wind gnawing at her coat. Ebott was quiet this early which, unfortunately, only fueled the train atop the one track of thought. She tried to focus on something, _anything_ else: the crunch of the snow under her feet, trying to avoid the ice forming on the sidewalks, or even the snowflakes melting on various spots of her anatomy. Toriel's cries bashed against the small wall she had erected inside her mind to separate her feelings from her duty. Hopefully this had all been a misunderstanding… her mother _hadn't_ gotten fired, just… just something. Frisk wasn't sure how the educational system worked as she was buried in her own niche of papers daily. The one thing she _was_ aware of, however, was the injustice that would've been carried out had Toriel truly been fired. And, if she was, then for what reason. From her mild understanding of the system; either a teacher quit or was to be proved unfit to teach students. A quick flash of all the small trophies for educational excellence Toriel had earned over the years flashed in her mind's eye. They weren't exactly valuable, but they were some of her mother's most prized possessions. It was proof that she had achieved her dream, and in doing so, were helping children along the way to start the path to their own dreams.

The large gate of Ebott Academy surrounded the school with well-kept topiary now donned with snow hats dotting the just as white lawn. She crossed the rather lengthy distance from the gate's entrance to the front door. When Frisk yanked on the door, it didn't want to open as small crystals of ice had formed on the crevice flush against the hinges. With a couple of grunts and a loud crack coming from her shoulder, the academy door was forced open.

Warmth dipped into her body upon entry and Frisk quickly closed the door to keep it in the building and trap the cold outside. She took off her striped gloves and stared at them for a moment before shoving them into her pocket and heading to the stairs to the other floors. With every step, a larger weight settled into her stomach. While she had promised she'd get to the bottom of the sudden termination, it hadn't rid her of the fear of what she would find. Her heeled boots echoed against the tiled floor with every hesitant step she took in the faculty offices. Many of them she recognized from having been teachers of her own many years ago. Others were replaced with younger teaches as the elder ones retired. She saw her mother's office door and frowned. She'd get her mother back in that office if it was the last thing that she did. At the very end of the faculty offices, Frisk was met with a door with _Bradley Beckett_ engraved on the plate.

"Come in." Frisk heard, slightly muffled from the opposite side of the door. Bradley Beckett had been a very understanding and trusting individual in the school system for _many_ years. His hair had visibly grayed over the time that she had known him, and his once broad shoulders seemed to slump and shrink. He hadn't looked up from the documents he was scanning upon her entry. Even still, she could see the furrow in his brows undoubtedly from whatever news he had received printed on the document seeming to stare back at him just as intensely as he was staring at it.

"Excuse me Sir." Frisk began. "Could I speak with you for just a few moments?"

Beckett looked up from his desk and took her in with widened eyes. He sat up and cleared his throat meeting eye contact.

"What can I do for you, Miss Dree—"

"Let's skip the pleasantries Sir." Frisk demanded. "You know why I'm here."

"In regard to your mother's termination, correct?" Beckett sighed and leaned his head against the back of his chair, his lids covering his eyes. Frisk could practically _feel_ how deflated he was from her sudden appearance. Of course, he had to know it was coming sooner or later and whatever had caused this wasn't going to remain secret—at least not to her—forever.

"Yes." Frisk affirmed, resolute in her signature determination to right this wrong.

"Miss Dreemurr, I have always tried to be a fair man." Beckett announced. "Over the years, I have tried to remain neutral and keep everyone happy. After all, we're all after the same thing here; take care of children and see them grow." A pause. "That's what every teacher wants to see, what every _parent_ wants to see." Opening his eyes and glancing down at Frisk whose attention was captured if rather warily, he continued. "However, I'm only one person. I can't do everything. I can't make everyone happy." His attention fully focused on Frisk, they stared into each other's eyes each asking and answering multiple questions without speaking. Neither were strangers to peacekeeping and mediating.

"… Who?"

"You know I can't give you that information…"

"Why? _Why_?" Frisk begged, tears pricking behind her eye sockets.

"I've received many complaints over the past few months from parents." Beckett breathed. "Many of them were asking for their children to transfer to another teacher's class. We only have so many teachers for certain grades, and when they were told as such… they demanded higher measures be taken. We tried to hold out for as long as we could, but… yesterday morning, we received a paper from City Hall… detailing the order of Mrs. Dreemurr's termination." Beckett took the paper that he had been staring at when she arrived and handed it to her.

The document was a couple pages long, but it might as well have been two lines long. The blatant hatred from the excerpts taken from some of the complaints quoted in the order were overflowing. She closed her eyes and furrowed her brows; shaking her head in utter disbelief. Frisk bit her bottom lip, blinking back tears from the closing of the order.

 _It is with deep regret that we of City Hall hereby revoke Toriel Dreemurr's teaching license and terminate her employment at Ebott Academy based on attempting to manipulate the minds of Ebott's youth and the fears of the parents of these children. In addition, Mrs. Dreemurr is hereby forbade from teaching in Ebott City and barred from ever attempting to regain her teaching license regardless of time passed._

The document fell to the floor while Frisk stood cemented to her spot. Ebott might as well have taken her life. Teaching was the very thing she wanted to do with her life, and she had not only been fired, but she had been barred from ever teaching again. Frisk's blue eyes darted back and forth along the floor in Beckett's office as if the answer would be lodged in the grains of the flooring. There were so many things she wanted to say; to _scream._ To protest. To beg. Yet, nothing would come out. She remained standing, shaking in place. How was she going to break this to her mother? That she had also lost her teaching license and was not allowed to try again. A soft jingling called Frisk's attention to Bradley Beckett's hand. The light of the office shined off an immaculate silver key. She closed her eyes, knowing instantly what that was and what she'd have to do next.

"I'm truly sorry to have to ask this of you Frisk…" Beckett confessed. "Will you clean out Toriel's office? Normally, the teacher would be able to do that, but… I don't think she could bear to do it even if she could."

"What do you mean 'even if she could'?" Frisk inquired. Is there a chance that it could possibly get worse?

"Toriel… isn't allowed on school property any longer."

"… Alright."

The key felt cold in her hands and the tumblers releasing the lock seemed louder than normal as if they were crying as well for the loss of the warm mother and teacher whose office they belonged to. The box dropped to the floor, the weight too much for Frisk to hold on to. Every tiny piece of Toriel's office had some meaning attached to it; placed just so for a very specific reason solely known to her. When Frisk took off one of the books from the shelf, it felt sacrilegious that she was disrupting her mother's livelihood because of some monster phobic humans. Book by book, Frisk took them off the shelf, placing them into the box with a systematic approach. On the walls, eleven in total, were photos of every class that Toriel had taught since becoming a teacher. The very first one Frisk took off the wall and saw how happy her mother looked with the children surrounding her with Frisk standing right next to her. A small droplet fell onto the photo, bubbling and magnifying Toriel's smile. She looked up, blinking rapidly to dry her tears before they could start fully. It was in vain however, as when her eyes lay on the discolored wall where the photo had been the tears fell at full force and Frisk hung her head as they fell to the green carpet littered here and there with white fur.

Frisk trudged through the snow back home. The box clutched in her grasp was weighed down with not only the physical possessions inside, but that of the many memories attached to the items. The smiles, the tears, the happiness, the sorrow. Her knees locked and buckled, sending her crashing into the snow below. Tears continued to fall stinging her cheeks when the cold breeze hit them. Gloved hands clutched harder to the cardboard that held her mother's life. Her head lolled forward, shoulders shaking with the tremors of her painful sobs. When she became older and more aware of all situations, Frisk had devoted herself to taking care of the very people that had taken care of her through her whole life. Every fear of being a failure washed into her, crushing her like houses beneath a tsunami. She had tried so hard to make things easier for everyone. She had tried so hard to make her friends and her family smile and happy. She had tried so, _so_ hard.

Time was a fleeting thing as it passed without her knowledge of how long she had been collapsed in the snow. She had been there so long the snow had melted around her to seep into the fabric of her clothes. The snow that had fallen onto her shoulders and hat had to be a few centimeters. The sharp pain associated with every intake of air crushed her lungs, begging her to get somewhere warmer. Slowly, Frisk pressed herself off the slushed puddle of snow and took a shaking step forward. With every step she took, she was becoming keenly aware of how cold her body had become. Her legs were numb, it hurt her to breathe, her fingers were frozen and felt like they'd break with any forced movement. Her eyelashes were clumped together, and her face was red from the cold and wind burn. All the way, she kept wondering how she was going to tell her mother what had happened, how blatantly evil the order from City Hall had been. Penetrating her thoughts, were her mother's cries of betrayal and sadness.

The house that used to be welcoming and loving now felt like the ending of happiness. Once she went in the house and Toriel saw her, she would know without words that the decision was final. With a deep breath that left her with a stabbing pain in her lung, Frisk entered the home. She should've been relieved to have the warmth of the home engulf her; welcome her. However, it felt like she didn't deserve such love and comfort. The warmth was taunting her; making her feel so separated from the comfort. Large footprints came downstairs and stopped at the edge of the stairs. Both Toriel and Asgore stared at their daughter who looked down at the box of memories.

"I tried…" She said. When she looked up, she saw Toriel's cries renew. Determined to keep her own in as to not worry her mother more, Frisk walked over to them and handed her the remains of her teaching career. Everything that Toriel was, was kept inside that box that she clutched so tightly to her chest. Frisk stared at her mother memorizing everything in the box, no doubt recalling memories attached to each that she was unaware of. "I'm sorry."

During the past month and a half, the snow had become more furious; more unforgiving. More questions were being risen and less were being answered. The only good news that she had gotten was that Bonnie had been released from the hospital. Yet, when Frisk had tried to go to her home to visit her, she was met with a human running the shop. When Frisk had asked about Bonnie's whereabouts, the human had displayed ignorance. Whether it was a feint or not she had been unable to determine. Her walks to and from the Ambassador's Office was met with less and less people and her desk was less and less full of papers. At first, she had been glad to have a break from the overwhelming flood of papers; complaints, thanks, or papers that needed her signature.

"Frisk!" The young woman blinked, stopping the unconscious spinning she was doing in her chair and stared at the people in front of her. "Hey, are you with us?"

"Jason? Adam?" Frisk asked, blinking seeing Jason wave a manila folder in front of her. She adjusted herself in her chair and flinched when the folder was dropped on her desk with a loud _thud_.

"Hey, you alright?" Jason asked, leaning on her desk and watching her.

"Y-Yeah, of course. I was just lost in my thoughts." Frisk said rubbing the base of her neck. "So, what's this about?"

"We need your signature on these papers." Adam said, nodding his head at the folder with a sidelong glance at Jason.

"That so?" Frisk asked, undoing the clasp and looking at the papers. Inside, detailed were the same papers she had been met with semi-annually. Just detailing the conditions of her renewal as the Ambassador and what the job entailed along with the understanding of the proper channels requests and the like must go through coming in or out of Frisk's office. It was also an agreement, that although she was the Ambassador to the monsters, that she must remain neutral if she were ever to appear in court trials, asked to testify, etc. "Ah." She reached into the cup on her desk and grabbed a pen. "Well, I'm glad I have at least _something_ to sign."

"Been quiet for you lately, huh?" Adam chuckled, leaning against the wall.

"You have no idea." Frisk said, glancing up at him.

Adam Beckett. The son of Bradley Beckett. He had been in Frisk's class when Frisk returned to the Surface with the monsters. He had always been kind and caring, even in class. Adam had always been at Frisk's side and had attended many of her birthday parties growing up. He had also been very close to Toriel, finding a mother figure in her as his own had left when he was three. Adam had retained his calm and peaceful demeanor into adulthood, only choosing to get close to a select few people. His physical appearance was almost identical to his father's younger version; black hair with green eyes and a shy, white smile. Adam was up for taking after his father once he retired, and if his little chats around the water cooler were to be believed, he was rather excited at the prospect of being able to take over after his father.

"Well, they say no news is good news, right?"

"Yeah, but it's boring too." Frisk declared, capping the pen and staring at it for a moment, fingering the tiny places where the covering had been worn down. It had been the first pen she'd ever used as the Ambassador. Back then, it had been used to sign her name to accept the position. A small smile overcame her face. She remembered how excited she had been when Sans had gotten the pen for her. He had told her to calm down, that it was just a pen. He had asked her if all humans got excited over small things like that, or if it was just her. Sometimes she found herself wondering the same thing. Nowadays, Frisk only used it to sign important papers such as renewals or laws that would affect monsters as the ink was becoming sparser. "Anyway, here you go." She stamped her seal next to her name on the final page and rebolstered the papers back into the folder and handed it to Jason.

"See ya later babe." Jason said and smirked at her before leaving.

"Well, I better get going. It was nice to see you again, Frisk." Adam said and took a step towards the door and stopped.

"Is there something else—" Frisk's voice was cut off when a small package was hastily placed on her desk. The door closed a few moments after Adam's quick retreat.

The small package was wrapped in red paper and golden ribbon. She looked at the door and then back at the box in her hands. Carefully, she undid the clumsy tape and unwrapped it. Inside was an elongated black velvet box and a smaller package. Her head leaned to the side and she opened the box. Inside was a small picture of them as children. She had both hands up in a V with a wide gap-toothed smile while a shy Adam stood next to her with an awkward smile. This picture was taken just after they had become good friends and she had invited him over to play. Adam was her first human friend and Frisk had been his first friend. Adam had always been taller than all the other kids, which he sometimes got made fun of. Due to his birthday, he was also always the oldest kid in the class and sometimes he got picked on and accused of being stupid. She sat the frame on her desk and smiled, admiring the black frame that said 'Friends' at the bottom. Her attention turned to the elongated black velvet box. She opened it with a little force and blinked. Inside was a folded-up piece of paper and a black and gold old-fashioned fountain pen. She took out the pen and saw that the exterior was merely old-fashioned, but she would be able to refill it if it got too low. Frisk took the paper and unfolded it, looking at the awkward letters that had barely changed over the years. The only difference was that it was an elegant awkward.

 _Frisk,_

 _I bet you were shocked when I suddenly came back to Ebott.  
I know I was shocked to find out how far the town had come in such a short amount of time.  
Seeing you after all these years, it made me happy.  
The fact that you let me come back into your life made me even more happy.  
The years haven't changed the fact that I'm still terrible at making friends.  
The talks around the water cooler have been stereotypically humorous.  
I just wanted to say, that I really enjoy being back here… With you._

 _When I was unpacking, I found a box full of memories and memorabilia from over the years.  
Inside the box, among other things, were two copies of this picture.  
I think that I accidentally got a hold of both copies somehow, so I wanted to give you yours.  
The frame fits really well, I think. I hope you do too…_

 _And the pen, well… I noticed that yours was getting old and you were using it less and less.  
When Dad showed you his fountain pen when we were kids, after lunch in second grade,  
you were enraptured with them afterwards.  
So when I saw this one, I knew I had to get it for you.  
It's refillable too, but I'm sure that you already noticed that._

 _That way, you can use this one and use the older one for only the_ extremely _important documents.  
I remember how happy you were when Sans gave you that pen, so I know how important it is to you.  
Make sure you save that ink for _really _important documents.  
Anyway, I hope you like your gifts._

 _Happy Birthday Frisk,_

 _Adam._

 _P.S. My handwriting got a lot better right? And I stopped writing "um" and now I just think it._

Frisk looked at the letter and chuckled a little at the last line. She remembered when Adam and her would write essays for class or just answers to a question, he tended to write "um" whenever he thought it, instead of just gathering his thoughts before writing again. The fact that he remembered all that, she was glad to have him as a friend. When Adam moved, she was sure that she was never going to see him again. Granted, she was old enough to leave Ebott on her own, she had no idea where he had gone. It had hurt her that her only human friend had left, but now that he was back, they could pick up where they left off. She took the letter and smoothed it out and unlocked her desk drawer and placed it carefully in there, locking it back.

Frisk took the pen and looked it over again. Engraved so it could be seen when she wrote was _Frisk Dreemurr._ Honestly, she didn't even want to think about how expensive this pen had been. From Adam's letter, she knew that he was aware that she didn't care about price and just considered the thought behind it. Gently, she placed the pen into the cup with the rest of her writing utensils.

"Happy Birthday…" Frisk muttered, her eyes shooting open. "Happy Birthday!"

She stood up so fast that her chair flew back and knocked against the wall. It was her birthday! Quickly gathering her coat, scarf, hat, and mittens she quickly put them on during her way to the exit. Frisk ran back towards her home. With every birthday that passed, she seemed to forget more and more about it. She staggered and slid some more of the ice that had crystallized itself on the sidewalk on her rush home. Toriel always baked the best cake and pie in the whole entire world on her birthday. Frisk wished that she could at least _try_ to believe that she couldn't believe she had forgotten her birthday, but truth be told she would've been shocked if she had've remembered that it was her birthday. Frisk fell on her butt with a loud grunt and struggled to get up.

"Stupid ice!" She exclaimed, pushing herself up and extending her arms to steady herself. When Frisk had stopped wobbling and was not worried about the possibility of her butt meeting the hard ground again, she tentatively stepped around the patches of ice before running back towards her home.

When Frisk burst inside of her home, she saw a group of her friends along with her mother and father standing in the living room.

"Happy Birthday Frisk!" They all exclaimed in unison, clapping and confetti flew everywhere.

Frisk giggled and admired the small party that had been prepared for her. True to tradition, she could smell the cake and the pie cooling in the kitchen. Streamers were attached to the ceiling and hanging down in various places. Blue and red intertwined giving a wonderful and somewhat nostalgic aura around the living room. Napstablook floated in the corner where his laptop had been perched on a table, plugged into the wall. It looked like it had seen better days from the position she was seeing it from. If she was to get another for him, she wondered if he would accept it or insist on keeping a hold on his old one.

"I'm so sorry I'm late guys. I—"

"You no doubt forgot it was your birthday, correct?" Toriel asked, a small smile on her face.

It had been hard on Toriel since she received the full news of her predicament. Her smiles had become non-existent for a while. Her mother looked like the walking dead and was hardly eating. For a while, Frisk was wondering if she was going to end up burying her mother. Then her smile had returned, but it was _extremely_ rare. Each one was like a gem that the person was gifted and lucky enough to see it. During that step of her recovery, she would start being seen more downstairs and in the kitchen. While Toriel had still cried, the fits came less and were further in between. When she did have an episode, it tore at Frisk and Asgore's heart. Frisk would hold her mother until she stopped crying. The more time passed, the more Toriel smiled. Granted, Toriel wasn't fully healed yet and sometimes would still choke up and cry a heart wrenching sob, it was very rare. Just as rare as her smiles had been in the beginning. Frisk was thankful that the news about her teaching career wasn't enough to snuff out the fire that was her mother's life and will to live.

"Guilty…" Frisk admitted and shrugged slightly. "But, I came as fast as I could."

Frisk looked around. Everyone looked tired save herself, Toriel, and Asgore. Even Napstablook looked tired. She wondered how it was possible for a ghost to look exhausted, but at least he wore the look well. Toriel clasped her large paws together and smiled at everyone.

"How about we give Frisk the gifts, while the food is cooling, yes?" Toriel suggested. "Grillby will be here shortly with the food."

Frisk blushed and sat down on the chair her mother had brought her. This was the second most awkward moment in any birthday party. The first was, and always would be, having "Happy Birthday" sung to you.

Muffet put out a dish of pastries out and handed it to Frisk.

"These are my gift to you, Dearie~" Muffet smiled, showing her trademark fangs. Frisk loved Muffet's desserts. "I hope you enjoy them. Sorry there isn't as much this year, I ran out of ingredients yesterday and haven't been able to go to the store to get some more yet."

"No, they're perfect Muffet. Thank you." Frisk said and took a bite and smiled bright.

"….oh." Napstablook muttered from the corner where his laptop was at. "i made you this spook-tacular mix." He floated over to her and handed her a jewel case with a CD in it. While Napstablook's music was very different and wasn't for everyone, she personally loved it. He always put in the perfect amount of thought for each and every song to create the perfect CD for her each and every time.

"Thanks, Blooky." Frisk smiled. "This is going to be awesome, I know it."

"This is from Alphys, me, and Mettaton." Undyne smiled and handed her the rectangle shaped package. Frisk looked at the two who were smiling and ripped open the package. Inside were a couple volumes of Frisk's favorite manga and a DVD anime series.

"This is amazing, guys." Frisk flipped through the pages, inhaling the scent of paper. "Thanks so much."

"THE DVD IS FROM ME." Mettaton clarified.

"You know me so well, Mettaton."

"OF COURSE. IT'S THE ONLY ANIME YOU NEVER STOP TALKING ABOUT."

"Oh, here my child. This is from your father and I." Toriel said and handed her a small black velvet box. It reminded her of the box the pen that Adam bought her had been in. She ran her hand along the top and the side of it. Part of the reason she liked velvet boxed presents was because she would be able to keep the box as well. It was one of her favorite textures. Frisk opened the box and her eyes widened at a heart inside. It was a golden heart locket. She picked it up out of the box and looked it over. Engraved on the front was _Frisk_. She looked up at her parents and smiled, happy tears pricking the corner of her eyes.

"Thank you, Mom and Dad. I love it." Frisk said, running her thumb along her engraved name.

"Look inside kiddo." Asgore said.

The inside was just as beautiful and elegant as the outside. There was a picture on one side of Frisk and her parents. On the other side, it was a picture of all them together. Each and every person in the picture was smiling whether it was awkward, happy, or shy a smile marked every face. Her smile slightly faded, noticing a certain pair of skeletons in the photo who were not present at the current event. Even though Sans and her were not on good times, he had still come to her previous party. Maybe it was just for Papyrus. With Papyrus not here, perhaps Sans didn't feel the need or the _burden_ to come. Trying not to worry her friends, she smiled and put on the necklace, feeling the heart rest against her skin; close to her heart just like her friends were.

"Thank you. It's so beautiful. I'll wear it every day."

A knock came at the door and Frisk sat up quickly. Could it be…? She went to the door and opened it. Standing on the opposite side was… Grillby. In both of his hands he had platters of food.

"Sorry." Grillby said just loud enough for Frisk to hear, noticing her disappointed face. When Frisk backed up to let him inside, he walked in and placed the platters on the coffee table. _Ooh_ s and _Ah_ s reverberated against the walls with Grillby's massive food output. Having Grillby's food catered to her birthday was one of her favorite parts, but… now she just felt empty. She hadn't even thought of the possibility of Sans and Papyrus not coming. Nor had she thought about how much it would affect her. "There's enough for everyone, don't fight now."

Clamors of forks and spoons _clanking_ against one another filled the air. Frisk continued to remain rooted to her spot, staring at the floor where Grillby had entered.

"NO NEED TO FEAR! FOR I AM HERE!" A familiar voice reverberated against the walls, causing Frisk to look up. The tall skeleton, the cool dude had just flown open the door and strutted inside. "I KNOW THAT YOU MUST HAVE ALL BEEN BORED AND LONELY WITHOUT ME HERE! DON'T CRY!"

"Hey Paps." Frisk smiled, having three containers of spaghetti forced into her hands.

"HERE! NOW YOU CAN SMLIE FOR I, MASTER CHEF PAPYRUS, HAVE BROUGHT YOU DELICIOUS MORSELS PREPARED DIRECTLY FROM MY HOME!" Papyrus gasped and took the containers back. "WAIT! THE PERFECT PLACE FOR THESE FINE DISHES MUST BE WITH THE OTHER FOOD! TO OUTSHINE THEM!"

Frisk watched Papyrus go to the table and open his container of spaghetti and set it down right by Grillby's food. Reluctantly, one after another the monsters grabbed some of the spaghetti to put on their plate. None of them could bring themselves to hurt Papyrus' feelings. She still found it cute that they all loved Papyrus enough to do this for him. His food _had_ gotten better over the years, so one puked when they ate it anymore, it just was rather on the bland side now.

Frisk turned her attention to where Grillby and Papyrus had walked in. No one else came. She didn't have anyone else to blame for this to be honest. Frisk was the one who said that she hated him first. That he was nothing. To her. To anyone. He would really have to be a glutton for punishment; a true masochist to come here of his own accord after that. She went to the fridge to put the containers in just as the door knocked again.

"AH I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL GET IT!"

Frisk closed the door just as Papyrus spoke again.

"OH! HELLO HUMAN JASON!" Papyrus said. "WELCOME! I HAVE MADE SPAGHETTI FOR FRISK'S BIRTHDAY!"

"Heh… uh… I—"

"OH, AND GRILLBY BROUGHT FOOD AS WELL!"

Frisk entered the living room again and smiled at Jason who had a bouquet of flowers in his hand. She stayed where she was and smiled. When Jason spotted her, he went to her side and hugged her, kissing her cheek and handed her the flowers. The wrapping crunched under her grasp as she stared. The flowers were beautiful; white with four singular petals on each side of the flower. Shockingly enough, when she went in and smelled it, it smelled like oranges.

"These are beautiful Jason." She said and smelled them again. She had never heard or seen a flower that smelled of oranges. "Did you spray perfume on them to make them smell like this?"

Jason chuckled and shook his head.  
"No, that's just the way they are. Cool right?" He asked.

"They are. Let me go get a vase for this." Frisk said, and the flowers were taken back from her.

"No, it's alright. It's your birthday, I'll go and do it for you." Jason said and kissed her cheek before heading into the kitchen with Toriel following him.

"I have the perfect vase in mind for these," Toriel said from the kitchen. Some clamoring echoed into the living room and Frisk fidgeted her nervously. It wasn't like Frisk had put on a full display of public affection, but she still felt wary. Like… _wrong_. None of her friends were saying anything that she should feel this way.

"That was so nice of him, Dearie~" Muffet said with a smile, but… it was forced. Frisk felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. There was a text from Fall that made her smile:

 _Frisk! Happy Birthday! I'm so sorry I won't be able to come to your party… I got sick a couple nights ago and it still hasn't gone away. I'll make it up to you. It'll be just us girl time. Happy Birthday again!_

The doorbell rang, cutting Frisk's thought out. Sighing, she went to the door and quickly opening it. The person behind it staggered backwards from the shock of the door suddenly opening. Her eyes had widened, and she remained glued to her spot. Her mind had gone blank and she was unsure what to say or do.

"OH! SANS! I WAS WONDERING WHEN YOU'D GET HERE!" Papyrus said, glancing over Frisk's shoulder making all previous conversations in the living room fall silent.

Before her, Sans was standing in the snow with his blue hoodie zipped up. His hood was up, and the laces of his sneakers were tied for once. Their gazes had locked, and he hadn't moved either.

"Close the door! It's cold!" Undyne exclaimed from the inside.

"O-Oh… um… come in." Frisk muttered and closed the door behind him when he entered the living room.

"I'm powering up the game system, so we can play." Alphys announced to the room that had fallen silent.

Frisk and Sans stood opposite each other. Before when gazes were locked, now they were doing anything possible to avoid looking at each other.

"… You didn't have to come." Frisk murmured, looking down at his shoes.

"i know."

"Oh." Frisk swallowed. "Thank you for—"

"…happy birthday." Sans cut off and held out his hand.

Frisk's eyes widened. She was met with a single purple flower. The flower had one stalk with multiple purple blossoms billowing from the center, surrounding the stalk as if to protect it. The beauty of it took her breath away. Jason and Toriel had walked inside the living room with Jason holding onto the vase of flowers just as Frisk had taken the purple flower from Sans.

"What's that?" Jason's deadpan voice sounded from behind her.

"A flower." Frisk smiled and looked at Sans. "Thank you. It's beautiful."

Sans looked down and scratched the back of his skull.  
"hey kid, can—"

"Great minds think alike, huh?" Jason interrupted, his voice strained and deadpan.

"what are ya talking about?" Sans asked and peeked behind Frisk, his once genuine smile turning into a smirk. "that what ya gave her?"

Every other person in the room was silent, even Papyrus, waiting to see what was going to happen between the all but verbally sworn enemies. Frisk was holding onto the purple flower that she had received from Sans while Jason was standing next to her with the bouquet of flowers that he had brought for his girlfriend.

"What of it?" Jason asked, the glares intensifying.

"fitting, for you." Sans smirked, his gaze not breaking from Jason. His brows had relaxed into the same type of understanding smile Sans had. Frisk didn't like the smile that either of them had and liked it even less that they had both come to some strange, almost possessed form of understanding. She held onto the flower from Sans close, breathing in the floral scent so much more comforting than the overwhelming citrus scent from Jason's flowers.

"Why don't—"

The door flew open, breaking off the first hinge and swaying as numerous men in black armor entered the home, eliciting screams from her friends. The gifts that she had previously sat down on the chair had been knocked over and trampled on. Shards of CD and jewel case flew around like shrapnel, cutting Frisk's legs and making her stumble. A couple went after Muffet while four went after Undyne. She summoned a spear and held it in both of her hands, swinging with full force at the human who had tried to grab Alphys.

"Come quietly and no one will get hurt." One of the black clad humans stated.

"You mean like no one got hurt at City Hall?" Undyne exclaimed, swiping at the humans again.

Shots fired as Undyne impaled one of the humans through the arm, rendering it useless for shooting. Asgore stood in front of Toriel with his large trident, smacking a couple humans with it and knocking them unconscious. For every human that was knocked out or incapacitated, more entered. Pictures were knocked off the wall from stray bullets. Small holes were punctured through the paint. Muffet's scream sent chills down Frisk's spine. A bullet was lodged in her leg and another had scraped her face. Frisk ran towards her friend but was pulled away by Jason and another human. No matter how many swipes Undyne made or slaps Asgore swung, within two minutes, they were outnumbered. She watched in horror as her friends and parents fell to the ground. Sans had grabbed a lamp and hit one of the humans in the head making him fall.

The fighting had spilled outside the house where more shrieks of pain and sadness resounded through the night air. Asgore pulled at the handcuffs, trying to get closer to Toriel. Her mother was walking peacefully with one of the humans with her head hung. One of the humans had Frisk restrained so she was unable to do anything but watch her friends and family being forcefully ejected from her home. In the distance, _lines_ of humans guiding monsters in cuffs stood out in stark contrast against the white purity of the snow. Frisk fought against the human while Jason was being detained by another. He however looked to have given up already as he stood there with his head hung.

"W-What's going on?" Frisk demanded, kicking and trying to pry the man's arm from her body.

"Exodus, Miss Ambassador."

"What?"

Frisk was dragged, kicking and resisting to take in the full view of this "Exodus". All around were humans guiding monsters to beyond a hill in the distance. It looked like a greater scale version of the riot at City Hall. Except they were being guided from the city to somewhere different. Families were torn apart and some of the monsters were limping from injuries sustained during the altercation. In the distance, he could see Muffet struggling to stand up from the injury to her leg. Frisk screamed and tore at the man's arm to get her to let go. She wanted to save her friends, her family, _all_ the monsters. A loud voice from a megaphone boomed, drowning out the cries for a savior and cries of pain.

"Monsters of Ebott City." The man began. The light from various vehicles obstructing the view. "You are hereby exiled from Ebott City and are relieved of all property, jobs, and titles. You will all be relocated to the Old War District where you shall remain and live your lives with the banishment in place. Any attempt to defy this law will be met with consequence up to and including your imprisonment."

Frisk fought against the man, reaching down and biting into his arm with all the force her jaw could conjure. She was dropped onto the snow and she began to run to her friends, Sans and Papyrus at the back. They were both following without handcuffs but showed no signs of resisting. Frisk put up her hand to try and block the blinding light, so she would be able to see exactly where her friends were. She shrieked when a loud pain erupted from her head. She grabbed onto her hair, feeling a tight grip around it. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the piece of glass she had managed to grab before they were forced from the house. Slashing with everything she was, she was relieved when the pain subsided, and she had fallen back into the snow.

Frisk ran, wiping away the tears to see better. A longer list of demands was being given from the man with the megaphone. They wouldn't be able to enter the main part of Ebott City without a human by their side and would only be allowed with handcuffs. Their visits would be recorded; their comings and goings into and out of Ebott City would be monitored and timed. She ran harder, wanting to get away from the demeaning list. Her legs burned with her muscles straining to get to her family. She had just gotten to her family when three humans grabbed her. Each of her friends pulled at their restraints to get to her. She struggled as they held her to where she was truly unable to move another step.

"Who ordered this?!" Frisk yelled. "This can't be carried out without my agreement!"

One human, whom she didn't recognize came around her with a smirk so wide she was wondering how his face didn't crack in half.

"But… you did Miss Ambassador." The man said, feigning shock.

"W-What?" Frisk stopped struggling. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw all her friends and family stop struggling and look at her. "I would never agree to this!"

A piece of paper thrust in front of her face spoke to the contrary. The long piece of paper outlined everything that was happening, everything that would happen, and the laws that the megaphone man were outlining as they spoke. Down at the bottom of it all, signed right below the Mayor's name, was hers:

 _Frisk Dreemurr_

Her stamp was even right by her name. She looked over at her friends who held mixtures of different emotions; betrayal, hopelessness, doubt, to name a few. They turned away and were taken towards the Old War district. She was forced to watch the life that all the monsters had built over the years crumble with just a simple name on a signed document; _her_ name. The very name that was supposed to build their lives took it away. Frisk's cries continued until she was hoarse, and nothing was coming out. All the monsters were out of sight. Then and only then was Frisk let go. She collapsed to the snow below her on all fours. The flower that Sans had given her was a couple paces away, tramped on and bent. Only two little blooms were holding on for dear life. She crawled over to the flower and picked it up, staring at the blooms. She rested back on her heels and hung her head, crying with renewed mourning.


	15. Exiles

The moon was shining bright, its rays illuminating the surrounding area. While Sans had always thought the nighttime was beautiful, this night was changing his mind. The rays he would've once considered beautiful now filled him with dread. The shadows that danced in the darkness of night that once sparked the imagination now set him on edge making him wonder; what was around the corner? Who was around the corner? And the stars… the beautiful, beautiful stars seemed to dim as if they didn't want to cast light on something so pitiful and hopeless./p

Yes.

Pitiful. Hopeless. Those were some of the only ways he knew how to describe this. While all the monsters fit into the large Old War slums there was nowhere _near_ enough housing to accommodate all the exiled citizens. The ones that had been lucky enough to enter the slums first were able to claim one of the rundown and beaten houses. Without enough rooves to shelter everyone from the snow, soon fear and anxiety took over and fighting broke out among each other. The humans that had "escorted" them to their new homes did nothing to try and stop the fights. A few of them even tapped another's shoulder to turn around and watch. From their faces it seemed the only thing that they were missing was popcorn.

Perhaps at one time the humans would've considered them equal. Now, to them, they were nothing more than animals in a zoo. Animals to watch run about with no clue on how to live their lives. Whatever plot that he—or any other monster—could come up with to escape was quickly snuffed out. Each side of the district was surrounded by humans with large guns that would dust them quicker than they'd be able to run. The obvious disadvantage in the wake of terror didn't stop everyone. The monsters that had started to fight among each other turned to some of the humans.  
Sans, along with numerous other monsters, watched one tall and rather buff monster head towards the two humans blocking the front entrance yelling profanities and insults of varying degrees. Papyrus watched and took a step towards the altercation, but Sans quickly grabbed his brother's arm to cease his advance. When Papyrus looked at his brother and back at the group, he stopped moving.

"What about our homes?"

"What are we supposed to do now?"

"What are we supposed to eat?"

"Where are we supposed to sleep?"

Three other monsters followed suit. All the back and forth yelling made each insult inaudible; blending into the next. The by standing monsters waited with bated breath on where this would lead. One of the monsters yelled in the human's face. When the armor-clad human pressed the monster back to which he shoved in retaliation everything erupted like a volcano. The humans stared threatening the monsters who were continuing their advance and shouting. It all happened so fast. No one could comprehend what had happened. One moment they were arguing, then one human knocked a monster down with the butt of his rifle, sending him to the snow-covered ground.

"You son of a bi—" The monster began, but… he was unable to finish his sentence.

The human raised his gun and without a flinch or hesitation shot the monster clean between the eyes sending blood and dust everywhere. Screams pierced the sky while mothers ran inward, holding their children close. The same children were turning to look back and cry various cries of "why" unanswered by their parents. The early demise of the monster was repeated with the other three that had dared to challenge the humans. Each monster fell to the ground with a loud and disgustingly wet _thud_. It took a lot for Sans' stomach to turn but seeing the already dusting bodies desecrated by a kick to the head to move them over or a step on the body almost made him vomit. He glanced up at Papyrus whose eyes were wide.

"Anyone else?!" One of the humans, no… one of those _monsters_ yelled to the crowds. It was no surprise that none answered his rhetorical question. They no doubt would not hesitate to pull the trigger on anyone without bias.

"Listen up! If any of you _creatures_ step out of line again, you'll meet the same fate as your dusted friends here!" Another human threatened. "You are no longer citizens of Ebott City! You will not leave unless you're escorted by a human and the visit is approved. And if I catch an inkling of you using some magic, you'll meet the end of our guns. Do you understand?"

 _Silence._

"He said: Do! You! Understand?!" Whimpers and cries dotted the crowd while heads nodded. "That's what I thought! Now get settled into your new… _lovely_ home.

Left alone to their devices, Sans had to tear his eyes away from the place where the monsters had been shot… _murdered_. Fear shook him when he realized he had lost sight of his friends. Him and Papyrus were the only familiar faces in sight. With guards posted at every corner, thoughts of his friend's dust scattering to the four winds seemed too real and too close for comfort.

"SANS…" Papyrus' soft voice called Sans from his thoughts. "WHAT DID WE DO WRONG…?"

"nothing paps."

"THEN WHY…? WE'RE ALL SUPPOSED TO BE FRIENDS! WHY…"

 _i wish i could answer your question, paps… i really do._

Monsters had broken into smaller groups; most likely familiar faces, friends, or family. From there, the looks in their eyes were unanimous. None of them knew what to do from there. Sans included. He tried to separate his own pain from the situation and focus solely on the objectives. Young children were freezing as they had been taken without preparation. Some of them were still in work clothes from the odd and very rare job. Others seemed to be taken right from their beds as they had pajamas on and were standing in the snow with no shoes on.  
Feeling more lost than he had ever felt in the Underground, Sans almost fell into the snow himself and broke down in front of Papyrus. Just as his caps were buckling, a warmth radiated from behind.

"Sans. Are you alright?" The skeleton monster turned and let out an exhale of pure relief.

"grillbs." Sans exhaled and glanced at Papyrus who was still staring at the dusted remains of the murdered monsters. "yeah… i'm alright."

"Good. Papyrus?"

"…"

"paps." Sans shook his brother's shoulder which brought him back to reality. He blinked and looked over at Grillby, too lost in his own thoughts to realize Grillby had found them.

"GRILLBY." Papyrus said and looked around. "WE LOST OUR OTHER FRIENDS…"

"All of them?"

"… yes."

Grillby ran a hand through the crackling flame above his head. Sans could see the wheels turning in his best friend's head. He was glad that one of them was still level-headed enough to think straight. He looked at the children who were holding tightly onto their parents and the parents who had given their coats or shoes to their children.

"First things first: Sans. Help me find barrels. Surely there are some still around if the homes are… somewhat standing.

A flicker of understanding crossed Sans' sockets. He had to pull it together. If not for himself then for Papyrus. He nodded and exhaled, trying to ignore how cold he was. "paps… help grillbs find some barrels. i'll try and find some wood." Papyrus gave a curt nod and went off with Grillby.

Sans canvased the area. He didn't want to get too close to any of the armored humans lest they find some reason to just shoot him. They all seemed a little high on adrenaline and a little trigger happy after the murders… He found a small cluster of short trees and bushes, tearing off limbs and dead pine needles. He stuffed those into his jacket and shorts pockets to make room for more. He would have to make more than one trip to carry a significant amount.

When Sans reached the unspoken rendezvous point, he saw Grillby and Papyrus rolling a rusted and holey barrel each. Panicked, terrified, and freezing monsters looked at each other and rushed to help. The vessels for what would become fires were placed at the entrance of alleyways in neutral areas not favoring either the housed nor the street monsters. Sans put a few twigs and pine needles into each barrel. A small child, probably about the age of 9 held a few logs in their little arms. Sans distributed them among the fire pits. When he was happy enough and sure that these would be the beginnings of decent fires, he looked at his friend. Grillby simply nodded and placed a hand over the wood, catching it on fire. The crackling of the newly kindled fires seemed to light some hope into the hearts of the shivering monsters.

"Let's all search for more barrels. We can split into separate teams; one for wood, another for barrels or some other sort of vessel to house fire." Grillby instructed. "Spread the word… and with any luck we'll all be here tomorrow to move forward." The last part was murmured mostly to himself, but Sans was close enough to hear it.

Sans couldn't think of a different time where monsters had worked together in a cohesive unit as they were now. All children were huddled around the fires trying their hardest to gather the warmth while the more adult monsters meandered around, scavenging to find the essentials for their nighttime survival. Anything that remotely looked like a vessel capable of housing a flame, Sans investigated. He dusted the snow off several containers; alerting the others in his group when he had found some that were suitable just to go and search for others. If some of these didn't pan out they'd have no other second options. This place was a death sentence. They all knew it, but none had the heart or the guts to say it. Within a couple of hours, only five containers were found. Wood and other flammable items were set ablaze by Grillby's touch. After the last was lit, Sans noticed something about Grillby. His friend, usually bright and shining was dim, lightly cracking, and visibly shaking from the chilled breeze. Inanimate fires took tending and constant care in any kind of breeze to prevent their extinction.

"grillbs." Sans muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets. His mittens had been inside the house back in the city, so his fingers were chilled to their marrow finding it hard to move them. "let's get inside."

"Sans. There could still be more out there."

"if ya die, we'll never know."

"I'm—"

"bullshit. you're looking like you're on your last ember."

"IT'S TRUE GRILLBY!" Papyrus agreed, coming up behind them. "YOU LOOK VERY TERRIBLE."

Grillby chuckled and looked at his friends "Alright. You win."

With the crunching snow beneath their feet, the three friends trudged to Sans' home. He had no where touched the door when cries came from behind them. They looked at a mother who was holding a child who had passed out in the snow. The boy's lips were blue, and snow was clumped onto his fur.

"Sam… Sammy!" The dog monster begged, shaking her unresponsive son. "Sammy! Please wake up!" Her cries continued to get louder the more she shook her son. "Please don't leave me!"

"hey…" He called, catching the woman's attention. He jerked his head to the door. "bring him in here."

"Y-You have a home?" The woman cried, holding her freezing son.

Sans nodded. The woman stood up scooping up her son and clutching him close to her chest. He looked over at Grillby. Behind his glasses, Sans saw understanding eyes. He pushed open the door to his home and ushered the woman in. The woman had no more than entered the home when a horde of scampering steps surrounded his home.

"You have a home?"

"Is there a fire?"

"Please! Take my daughter!"

"And my son!"

"Please!"

"My daughter is sick… Please don't leave her out here!"

Sans' sockets widened. Monsters were pushing each other, pleading their cases. Every time Sans met the eyes of one of the children, he felt part of him shatter. They all looked broken and helpless. His house was hardly big enough for the three of them, but…

"…"

"Please! Don't let them die…"

"YES! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WILL TAKE THE SICK CHILDREN INSIDE!"

One by one, sick and freezing children entered his home. When he peeked inside, his already cramped home was becoming worse with each passing second. When Sans' home was almost full to the brim with children and some parents, he shook his head.

"i'm sorry… but i can't help anymore."

"What about my child?" One monster yelled. "Why are their children more important?!"

"NO ONE IS—"

"Then why won't you help!?" One man cried, holding his daughter. "We have to help each other."

"I'm sorry…" Grillby said.

The monster that was holding his daughter looked at the small girl and then held her out.  
"Then… please just take her. I just need her to be warm. "Please."

Grillby took the little girl who huddled up against the fire monster, teeth audibly "Be safe." The monster said. He took a small doll out of his pocket and handed it to the small girl, petting his daughter between her ears. He looked at Grillby, Sans, and Papyrus. "Thank you."

"Daddy…?" The little girl called, reaching out her small paw for him.

"Daddy loves you Annabelle." He said and kissed her forehead. "Sleep well."

When the monster backed into the crowd of monsters that had been unable to enter the home, Grillby and Papyrus walked inside. Sans turned to the group, "…i'm sorry…" He apologized. "we have no more room." Despite all the children that had been allowed into the home, there were still so many more in the group that had been denied. "try some of the other homes… that's all i can say."

"Wait! You can't—"

A door had never sounded so loud or so final as when he separated himself from the monsters on the outside. He looked at the little girl—Annabelle—that had been entrusted to Grillby. She held onto his vest for dear life, curling into a ball against his chest. Each parent was huddling into a certain corner of the home with their children. He felt like he was in a sardine can with how clumped together they were. Papyrus had given the little boy—Sammy—his bed. His mother was crying, tucking in the still unresponsive boy. The mother's cries caused some of the previously silent children to start crying.

Sans didn't know how long he listened to the children crying or the mothers and fathers trying to console him. He was unsure how many times the small children had said "I'm cold" to their guardian. Sitting in a corner with Papyrus, he tried not to think of the families he had exiled into the cold for lack of space. Ebott's winters were harsh and unforgiving. With the breeze that was roaring outside, he didn't want to think about how cold it was out there. How he wished to be back in his home with the heat on. The humans probably had their heaters turned on full blast tonight.

 _Humans._

 _Frisk._

After all the fighting that Sans and Frisk had done, he never thought that she would stoop to something so low. If she was _that_ mad at him, he would've just made sure that he stayed out of her path, so they had to never run into each other again. She didn't need to exile all the monsters from Ebott City to get rid of him. If it meant that Papyrus would've been in their home and that all these families would've been in their home, Sans would've just left Ebott. There was absolutely no need for this. He laid his head against the wall and exhaled and closed his sockets. This wasn't the best sleeping position, but after what Frisk had done to them, it's what he had to deal with in this tightly packed sardine can.

"You did all you could." Sans had nearly fallen asleep when he heard the voice. He opened his sockets and looked towards the voice.

Grillby looked just as bad as when they had got inside the home. His friend was leaning against the wall in the now silent home. One hand was resting inside the fireplace to keep the fire in the home, and himself, burning while the other was on Annabelle's back. The little girl had fallen asleep and was no doubt comfortable against the flame monster's chest.

"maybe…" Sans whispered back with a sigh. To his right, Papyrus had fallen asleep. He reached over and tugged the one raggedy comforter he had brought with him over his brother. "it doesn't feel like enough."

"It never will."

"now what do we do?" Sans asked, looking up at the ceiling and listening to the harsh wind outside. They must all be so cold…

"Take it one day at a time." Grillby answered. "That's all we can do. Tomorrow… the emotions will have died down a little. Then we can think of a plan on how to live."

"you mean survive?"

"At first. But then live. Then _thrive_.

Sans chuckled bitterly. They were fighting just to live. The thought of them _thriving_ this… this… this _death sentence_ was laughable. They hadn't just been exiled. They had been thrown away, left to die and rot out of the sight and mind of humans. He couldn't even see them surviving until next week let alone thriving here. He didn't want to tell Grillby that, though. His friend was most likely thinking the same thing. If one of them had enough in them to stay positive, the other would have to give just as much. He was so drained… he was having a hard time keeping his sockets open. Grillby was silent for a long time and soft snores indicated that his friend had fallen asleep. His sockets closed, unable to deny his body the slumber it craved.

Faint yelling stirred Sans. Everyone was sleeping other than Grillby. He still held Annabelle cradled to his chest but had stood up and was looking out the window. Sans grunted, feeling his spine pop when he stood up, tucking Papyrus in with what bit of the comforter he had used last night. He stepped over legs, fins, and wings to get to the window.

"The humans are building something." Grillby murmured, not turning to look at Sans.

"building?" Sans echoed, still groggy from his less than peaceful sleep.

"Yeah, you know, the opposite of destruction?"

Sans chuckled and shook his head  
"i didn't think they had the capability for that."

It was only then that Grillby turned to him, "Sans—"

A loud, jarring sound shook the ground waking everyone in the house all at once. The younger children started crying and clinging onto the parents. The devastation surfacing in their parents' eyes when they realized that this hadn't in fact been a dream. This was the new reality given to them by the very person who had given them their hope.

"WHAT WAS THAT?" Papyrus asked, now awake and standing fully alert by his side.

Sans said nothing and went to the door and opened it, walking outside. Some of the monsters had woken up from the sound that had shaken the earth beneath their feet while others remained sleeping near the fire. Some others left the house and stood around to take in the view.

At the front, humans dressed in the black commando outfits that had delivered them to their new… "home" stood by some others in yellow hardhats and ugly neon green safety vests. A large piece of metal with various grooves etched in it had been slammed into a hole that had most likely been placed there the previous night while they all slept. He shoved his hands in his pockets.

"What the hell is this?" Grillby murmured, twisting and turning his head to get a better view. Sans shrugged and moved towards the crowd and through to get a better look. Another of those metal poles was being released into another hole. So far, there was a total of four.

"What is that?"

"What are they going to do with us?"

"Is it going to hurt us?"

Sans ignored the chattering and gave a sour laugh when metal stripes and wire were connected between two of the metal poles. Instantly, he understood what this was. This wasn't a home anymore—if it was even one in the first place. This was a prison. Most likely a prison where they would all of them would perish. Where the next generations would come to perish until the ground beneath them were nothing but bones of monsters from generations to come. This is the place where they'd go extinct./p

"Is… that what I think it is?" Grillby asked, rubbing Annabelle's back.

"yeah." Sans said, "a fence."

"Listen up!" One of the humans yelled into a megaphone. His croaky voice only heightened from the crackling in the megaphone. "This here gon' keep all you cretins in line. This here be an anti-magic fence! None of y'all are gon' be able to use them damned tricks of get outta here. And don't even get it in ya fucked up heads that ya can break it. Ya touch it, and you're dead. Either we'll shoot ya or the fence will shock ya so much you'll wish we killed ya."

Sans' sockets widened. It was a wider version of what the cell doors at the jail were made up of. That would explain why it shocked him. It responds to magic. If his deduction was correct, then that would mean that those bars and their anti-magic properties were the source of his depletion of magic. Funny that those humans had thought of something so terrible and just… _evil_ if they hadn't been planning on using it from the beginning.

"And if'n ya cross this line up here." The 20 packs of cigarettes a day human pointed to a yellow pole. "Before the project is finished, you'll be punished. Got it?"

The monsters that were close to the pole quickly moved away and ran to another part of the slum. Sans looked around. The fires were still weakly burning. All attention was on the fence being steadily built. He couldn't help but find it funny. Countless times, complaints had been filed throughout the city about potholes in the road and it took months to get a small hole fixed, but he bet this large fence would be completely surrounding them by the end of the day.

"Daddy…?" Sans turned and saw that Annabelle had woken up and was blinking her big amber eyes at Grillby. "Where's my daddy?"

Sans looked around and saw her father resting at the entrance of one of the alleyways by the house. Seeing Grillby look around, Sans jerked his thumb at the monster. Grillby sat the little feline monster down and watched her trot the small space over to where her father was.

"Morning Daddy!" Annabelle called. "Time to wake up!" The innocent smile that was on her face faded when her father didn't move or make any notion that he had heard her. "…Daddy?" She called again, shaking him.

"Oh no…" Grillby murmured.

"Daddy, why won't you wake up?"

Papyrus looked at Annabelle. The worry on her face was increasing with every unanswered call. Sans furrowed his brow bones and closed his sockets. He had read about this. Usually, when monsters died, they turned to dust. However, when a monster… froze to death, their soul was still preserved as it hadn't been pierced or the body hadn't received any external wounds, their body was preserved as well. Like a human's corpse.

"Daddy? Wake up! Wake up Daddy!"

With the little feline girl's traumatic cries, he thought it would've been more merciful had her father just turned to dust. Seeing a dead monster's body wasn't a common thing and each monster who observed the sight instantly tried to wake any sleeping monster by them. Some of them woke up, more of them did not.

Grillby went over to Annabelle and picked her up, taking her from the scene. She screamed, and Sans tried to drown out the sound it pierced right through him, all of them. Even though she fought and even though she was young, she clearly understood death. Perhaps her mother had died sometime prior. She stopped fighting and could only watch when she turned into Grillby's chest and cry each tear that touched his body being released as smoke which soon evaporated in the cool air. Yet, he didn't stop her from mourning even though every drop of her tears hurt him. There was a reason Grillby said that he never touched water.

Sans hadn't thought that they would need to dedicate a spot in this community to a graveyard so soon. No graveyard should have this many bodies in it as soon as it opens. Unable to find a shovel, Sans volunteered to make the grave for Annabelle's father, with her permission. Grillby was holding the crying girl while Papyrus was trying to find something to use for a headstone. Sans brushed some snow from the ground and dug his phalanges into the dirt, digging into it. The other monsters that had offered to make graves for the deceased, nameless or otherwise, followed his example while others were canvasing for anyone else that may not have survived the frozen night. With each clump of dirt that Sans pulled from the hole, he wondered if one day he would be buried like this; here. Would he have to bury his friends here like this if they hadn't survived the night? What if… one day he had to do this for Papyrus? His nonexistent stomach lurched at the thought of having to lay his only family down into the crudely made grave.

He stood up and rubbed his dirty hands on his shorts. The taller and more well-built monsters, like Aaron, took the frozen bodies to the graves and placed them in a hole while Sans assisted in covering the bodies up. When the snow started to melt, and the soil followed in turn, the bodies would most likely turn to dust. He was thankful that Annabelle wouldn't have to see that. While the little girl was strong, he didn't think of any child, or even adult, that could be sane after seeing that.

Winter was quite possibly the worst time for this to have happened. Food would be scarce, and he was finding it hard to believe that the humans would help them out like that. While monsters could survive without food for a longer period of time than humans could, when the descent started, it would quickly escalate. As if one of the monsters was reading his mind, they spoke,

"What are we going to do about food?"

"You're right… We have to start thinking ahead now."

Sans listened to the monsters throw out ideas. All stupid ones. Try and sneak out. Try and beg for food. They'd either die from the fence or a gunshot. Begging for food? It would probably just get them the same results. No. They'd have to think of something else.

"THAT'S A VERY STUPID IDEA! YOU WILL GET HARMED. DIDN'T YOU HEAR THAT SPEECH? IS YOUR HEARING BAD?"

"The fuck did you just say?"

"OH! SO, IT IS!" Papyrus said and smiled brightly. "OKAY! I'LL TELL YOU, HE—"

"Shut the fuck up."

"BUT IF I DO THAT, HOW WILL YOU—" Papyrus was cut off by a monster punching Papyrus, knocking him against one of the buildings.

Sans' sockets darkened, and he grabbed onto the arm of the monster and threw him to the ground. Without a moment's hesitation, he slammed his foot onto the chest of the large dog monster earning a pained grunt from it. The commotion produced a large circle to form around the confrontation.

"Get your foot off me!" The monster yelled, trying to pry his foot off, but Sans only pushed harder shoving his hands into his pockets like it was no big deal.

"you like preying on the weak?" Sans asked, shoving harder. If he had this much power over this monster, he must have a high level of violence. Grillby must've noticed as well as he pulled out to get Annabelle out of there. The little girl didn't need to see what would happen if this went south. Sans raised a brow bone when the monster grunted in pain.

"SANS, THAT'S PROBABLY HURTING HIM." Papyrus said, rubbing his jaw.

"H-Hey get off me…" The monster grunted, again trying to pry Sans' foot off him. "L-Look I'm sorry…"

"WELL HE APOLOGIZED. HE LEARNED HIS LESSON." The innocent smile of his brother had returned. Since there were no marks on Papyrus, Sans slowly lifted his foot taunting the monster with the slow promise of returning the deprived oxygen.

"get out of my sight," Sans ordered when he took his foot fully off his chest. " **N o w**."

The monster scampered to his feet and ran as far in the opposite direction as he could away from Sans until he was out of sight. The white pinpricks returned, and he looked at his brother. Some of the surrounding monsters stared in awe as others stared in terror. He smiled at both and examined Papyrus' skull. Just as he thought, no marks or chips.

"well, ya always seem to get in all sorts of trouble, don't ya?"

"OF COURSE! I AM THE GREAT AND MAGNIFICENT PAPYRUS!"

Sans shoved his hands in his pockets and turned to the group of where that monster had belonged to in the first  
"it is a stupid idea, but, do what you want." He said and left, heading back to find Grillby with Papyrus at his side. It didn't matter where or who it was, if his brother was threatened, he'd raise his own level of violence to save him. Even if it had to be the highest of anyone, he would do it without a second thought.

There were monsters trying to forage some berries and others were finding more wood for the fires dotting the central part of the slums. If they wanted to survive, they'd have to work as a cohesive unit. Since they were all in the same boat, maybe they'd be able to do that. They were living, breathing beings as well. Each with different opinions of people, so the notion of a utopia where each monster fully accepted the other and helped without desiring anything in exchange was pure idealism. First thing was first, he'd have to find Grillby and Annabelle. From then, each of them could sit together and come up with a game plan.

"I'm telling you I have the document!" A muffled voice caught his attention. "If you'd shut up for a fucking minute, you'd have heard that!"

Sans found Grillby and Annabelle outside the home, staring at the guards at the front. They were in a heated argument with a young woman who was waving some papers in her hand. He raised a brow bone and shielding his sockets from the bright sun he saw a young woman standing there. She was arguing with the man, but she slammed the papers into the man's chest. Before he could grab them, she let go and they fell to the ground. When she turned, he was able to vaguely see that she had brown hair.

"Sans!" The young woman called and ran passed the guards and headed further into the slums.

 _Frisk._


	16. Encampment

It was physically painful to see where her friends had ended up. The surrounding wall stood menacing, almost glaring down at her upon her arrival. Humans pulled and tugged at a long, jagged wire. It took her quite a few moments to process what she was seeing. The wire latching between the two pieces of engraved metal was sharp ready to pierce any poor fool who dared get too close. They were placing barbed wire around the fence as it was built. A temporary makeshift gate stood at the forefront of this hell with two humans standing at attention.

She had heard tales of the slums when she was a child. While spacious, they were dirty, had no electricity or running water. The houses were falling apart, and some had already crumbled. When it rained, the soil would soak up the rain. However, since there was no place to distribute it, the soil would become muddy and create mud slides. The foundations of the homes would erode beneath Mother Nature's fury. Within time, everything would be gone. While nothing lasted forever, just the thought of her friends having what little they were able to have ripped from them, she felt like vomiting.

Her friends' lives, their desires, and their families were the driving fuel that kept the tears at bay. She couldn't think of her own sadness or her own pain. Even while Frisk was being… _frisked_ at the entrance to ensure that no contraband was being smuggled into the slums she thought of her friends. Of her parents. Of Sans. Determination gripped onto her soul making her ignore the guard's hands ran up the inside of her thighs and over her butt. This never would've happened if she had've just paid attention. If she had been better. Realizing her own shortcomings, she deserved this. She deserved the vulgar comments about her body and the lewd touching. There was no question that if she resisted, she would be turned away. These handsy "men" were her ticket into the slums. Frisk distanced herself from the touching, frantic to place herself anywhere but in that moment. Her grit paid off, elation hugging onto her as the makeshift gate was slid away to allow her inside.

Upon her entrance, Frisk was halted with an outstretched hand. Another human, this one packing an assault rifle stared at her. His fingers wiggled silently commanding the acquisition of an item. This human was most likely the one sifting through those with documentation and permission to enter from those who did not. If this was the treatment she got when she _did_ have the entrance documents, she feared to think of what would happen for those who weren't approved.

"Papers."

Frisk nodded and opened the folder, trying to find the very paper he needed among all the others present.

"Hold on a—"

"Papers."

Frisk's eye twitched. Being interrupted was one of the actions she hated the most. Through the years in politics, she had been forced to subdue her hatred in lieu of angering the other.

"I'm sea—"

"Papers."

 _Was that the only word he knew?_

"Unless you have the entrance document, you're—"

"But I—"

"You'll have to leave—"

 _That's it!_

"I'm telling you I _do_ have the document!" Frisk yelled, startling the man. "If you'd shut up for a fucking minute, you'd have heard that."

Frisk slammed the whole folder into the armed guard's chest. Just as his hand went to grab it, she let go listening to the tornado of papers fall to the ground. In hindsight, it probably was a bad idea. Frightened and angry humans were the worst types as they shot first and asked questions later. Whatever this group did to be given the "honor" of watching over the monsters in the slums, they couldn't be friendly. Her determination and short fuse had been known to get her trouble in the office more times than not. If Frisk was banned from the slums, she wouldn't be able to find her parents and see what was really going on. Ready to turn and attempt damage control, her eyes laid on a group of monsters. Ahead of them was,

"Sans!"

The cold of the snow was nothing compared to the cold stare she received when she got face-to-face with the group. She was truly met with the definition of "if looks could kill". She parted her lips to speak but noticed a small girl in Grillby's arms instantly catching her attention. In all the years of knowing the flame monster, she had never seen him show interest in another person let alone having a family. The small orange cat in his arms was too large to be his, even if he had've been with a cat woman. The little girl's eyes were wide with either intrigue or terror. What could a small child have seen to contort her eyes in such a way? Seeking shelter within the confines of Grillby's arms, the little girl still managed to keep an eye on Frisk.

"FRISK, IT'S GOOD TO SEE YOU." Papyrus said with his usual bright smile. How odd, that he still retained all this innocence and peace even in this dire of a situation. No other monster could calm a room or a group like he could. "YOU LOOK VERY COLD."

"Do I?" Frisk smiled shyly and rubbed her shoulders. It wasn't the cold of the snow or Winter that was getting her, it was the glower from her once best friend just at the corner of her vision.

"YES, I WOULD INVITE YOU INTO THE HOUSE TO GET WARM AS I AM A VERY GOOD HOST."

 _They have a house? Good…_

"BUT… WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH ROOM AND WE HAVE NO HEAT."

A ton of bricks fell onto her soul, weighing it down so much Frisk felt its crushing imminent. They had no skin or warm blood to keep them warm as it was. Yes, their internal magic acted as a buffer from the harshest of the elements at the surface, but prolonged exposure… they would end up cold just like everyone else. With no heat to escape to, other than Grillby and a makeshift fire, they would freeze to death—winters were the most unforgiving season in Ebott.

"I-I see…" Frisk trailed off. Just the thought of her friends cold in the harsh storm that had rocked the trees last rose bile in her throat. Trying to find something else to focus on, she turned to the little kitten. "What's your name sweetie?"

"…Annabelle."

"Annabelle, that's a beautiful name." Frisk smiled. "How did you meet Grillby here?"

"… My daddy let me stay with Mr. Grillby last night, so I would be warm."

"Oh, where's your Daddy?"

Frisk instantly felt wrong when the fur around Annabelle's eyes became wet with tears. She looked up at Grillby who rubbed her back. Clearly, she had missed out on something. Frisk's eyes widened. Papyrus had said that they had no room, her father had given her to Grillby to stay warm. As if to confirm her suspicion, when she looked at Grillby, he gave a curt nod. Lately, Frisk had become very familiar with the sensation of swallowing bile to avoid vomiting.

"Don't worry Annabelle, Grillby—"

"Grillby Ignis?"

Grillby turned, raising a brow. Frisk hadn't known that Grillby even _had_ a last name. She turned with the rest to see a fat human with a large jacket that was practically screaming in pain from trying to contain all the man. The pants in a similar fashion. Briefly she contemplated if the human had any awareness of clothes sizes. The cigar between his teeth only added to the pompous air his smile contained. The smoke blew into Grillby's face, fogging up his glasses. If it wasn't for Annabelle being in his arms, she could easily see the flame elemental punching the human through his face. In this… prison, there would only be consequences if he did give into that. He must've thought the same as Frisk noticed his grip tightening onto Annabelle, holding onto the small girl for dear life.

"Who are you?" Grillby asked.

"Not that you have the right to ask, but, my name is Jacob Rice." The fat human stated as if Grillby should've known just from seeing him. "I'll be your escort back to the bar."

"To my bar?" Grillby murmured. The laws had clearly stated that they had no rights to buildings in Ebott or properties. What was this human getting at? "Why?"

"As much as my associates and I _hate_ to admit it. We have acquired a taste for your food. You have one of two options Ignis, you can follow me and go to your bar to cook for my associates and I or you can stay here and freeze. The choice is yours."

"Wait, what's the meaning of this?" Frisk said. "I should've been informed of this."

"Keep out of this Dreemurr, this is above your head."

Above her head? She was the one who made all laws and decisions for the monsters. Maybe, she should just revoke that title. After all, she was the one—somehow—that had doomed the monsters to living and… and freezing to death in this prison. Annabelle's father's death was on her head. Since her mother hadn't come to claim her, Frisk could only assume that her mother was dead as well either by meeting the same fate as her father or by a different means.

"On one condition," Grillby said.

The human laughed and leaned over, lighting another cigar on Grillby's body.  
"You're not really in any position to be bargaining." He said. "I came here to be polite, but truth be told Ignis, you're either going to come with me voluntarily or by force. By because of my curiosity, I must know. What is this "condition" you have?"

"The girl comes with me." Grillby said, holding onto Annabelle who had gripped onto his vest clearly terrified at the prospect of the flame monster leaving her alone.

The human chuckled again and shook his head. His roaring laughter making even Frisk cringe. Smoke billowed from his mouth with every chortle leaving his slimy mouth. He held onto his stomach and leaned his head back. Enraptured by the straining of the buttons on Rice's jacket, she was counting how many times it took for his laughter to cause the button to pop. Rice's crazed laughter calmed, and he wiped tears from his eyes, shaking his head.  
"Oh man, it's been a long time since I laughed that much." He said still wracked with the aftermath of his laughing fit. "You've got guts Ignis." His eyes turned to the small girl clutching at Grillby's chest. "Well, since I'm such a… _kind_ man, I'll indulge your request Ignis. Gotta say, I've never seen a monster play Daddy before."

From the corner of her eyes, Frisk saw Grillby's shoulders relax from the exhale of a breath he had been holding. Two of the armor-clad humans came to them and Rice snapped his fingers. Frisk had never seen this human before, but he clearly had power. He went to Grillby and cuffed his wrists that were still supporting Annabelle. Much to her horror, Annabelle's tiny wrists were cuffed as well. What the hell could a little child do? The humans—if she could even call them that—ushered Grillby and Annabelle towards the entrance of the prison and out. The gate closed and the nagging of never seeing her friend again gnawed at her brain. Of course, she knew it was ridiculous. Rice would bring Grillby and Annabelle back after he had served the purpose of serving the humans for the day. She frowned at the thought. All she had to do was stay positive. Keep positive.

"BROTHER! I'M GOING TO GO AND CHECK ON EVERYONE INSIDE."

"Everyone inside?" Frisk echoed, her brows furrowing.

"OH! YES! LAST NIGHT SANS OFFERED MANY MONSTERS INTO OUR HOME TO SHELTER THEM FROM THE COLD. HE IS A VERY CARING MONSTER! BUT YOU KNOW THAT OF COURSE!" Papyrus left with a wave and went back to the house.

The tension and fear of being left alone with Sans' snow cold glare became reality once Papyrus left. Even though Sans was about five inches taller than her, she might as well have been two inches tall; right now, that's how tall she felt. His gaze pierced into her soul, like he was trying to murder her with just his glare. Frisk parted her lips, unable to find any words to come out. What was she supposed to say? How could she make this right? How could she make his smile one of humor or happiness? Frisk swallowed the lump in her throat and willed her feet to take her a step closer.

"get away from me."

Sans had never flashed his gold iris at her, she had never thought that he would flaunt his magic at her. The intent to harm her prominent buckling her legs in place. Fear preventing her from taking a step closer. With his gaze and his anger, he would no doubt kill her without a moment's hesitation. Bits of her would be scattered across the slums and her soul would be shattered leaving nothing but her blood staining the snow. Even still, she couldn't let it end this way. Let him hate her, but she couldn't let it go without telling the truth. He could hate her for all eternity; they could hate each other until the day both of them perished, but some things had to be set straight.

"Sans, I—"

" **y.** " Sans warned. " **I** **u, n."**

"Sans, you have to listen to me!"

A weight gripped her soul and the ground disappeared beneath her. Within a second, she was thrown a good distance from him and slammed against a wall. She slid down, trying to shake the stars in her gaze when her head knocked against the deteriorating brick. Oblivion tugged at the corner of her vision with her head lolling around. Her mouth was dry, and her body felt heavy. Using the remaining willpower, she looked up and saw Sans standing over her, staring down at her his glowing iris illuminating the space around them. If this was how things ended, she would at least be in the presence of her once best friend. Her last thoughts would be of the time they spent together. The time they had looked into each other's eyes so deeply she felt time stop, the times he would help her with her math homework when she had problems. All the good memories flashed through her brain like a slideshow.

"was this your plan all along?" His voice was low, rumbling deep within his sternum. It was a voice she had never heard before. Suddenly, she was thankful she had used the restroom before she came to the slums. "to gain our trust and then betray it?" Was he really accusing her of this? With everything that had happened, she could see why he'd be upset, but… but to accuse her of plotting against monsters since the beginning?

"No! Of course not! I—"

"so, the plan was made up as you went along? betray all your friends and your parents?"

"No! Sans, I would never!"

"then why did you sign that paper?!" Sans yelled making Frisk flinch.

"I didn't!" Frisk tried to defend, but Sans' expression indicated that he wasn't buying any of it. "I swear!"

"did you want to put us in here, so you could watch us all die slowly? finally forcing the monsters to extinction…"

 _Sans…_

"Please believe me!"

"why?!" Sans yelled. "what have you done to make me believe you?! what proof do you have that you didn't plan this?"

 _I… I…_

"I… don't have any." Frisk whispered and looked up at him. "But why would I do this? To Papyrus? Grillby? Undyne? Alphys? Mom? Dad?! Why?! What would I have to gain?!"

"nothing… that's why it's so sickening."

"Believe me!" Frisk begged, shouting as if her volume would get through to him. Her eyes widened, and she flinched when Sans' hand raised. A few bricks were lifted from the ground, sweat dotted his ivory dome. It was below zero degrees out here, why would he be sweating? Her blue eyes glazed with tears and stared into the dark sockets of her once best friend. She closed her eyes and felt the tears fall down her face. If she was going to die here, she didn't want this… expression of his to be the last thing she'd ever see. She wanted the memories of _her_ Sans in her head. The air parted as the bricks flew at her face and Frisk felt her doom imminent. She cried out and flinched each time a crash resounded next to her head. One was so close that a pain erupted from her skull from where her hair had been tugged. No more sounds came from around her and she dared to peek one eye open. Sans' dark sockets stared into her soul and her body was shaking from pure terror.

"consider this your first and final warning, frisk dreemurr." Sans warned. "mark my words, human, if you attempt to lie to me again, the next hit _won't_ miss."

Frisk's lower lip trembled. He had just threatened to kill her. To _murder_ her. Tears stained her cheeks as his words seeped into her body. She wanted to sob, to scream out her heart wrenching cries but was unable to make any sounds. Terror shook her body and she wished that he had just killed her. Just crushed her head against the wall. That way, she wouldn't have to live with the burnt bridges between them or the looming threat of her potential death. Sans turned around and walked away. She was only able to move when he had turned the corner, as if a spell had been broken. She stood up and looked at the bits of brick that was almost her crushed skull. She left the corner where she had almost died and headed back towards the gate. Frisk wanted to go around and find her parents, but, she wasn't ready to tell her questioning parents what had just transpired.

Frisk had no more than passed the entrance to head back outside when screams came from behind her. It was a high voice, a motherly voice. For a few seconds, she was thinking it was her mother. The monster she did see was a curvy dog monster running towards her.

"Miss Dreemurr! Miss… Please help me!" She begged.

"W-What?"

"My son Sammy is sick!" She exclaimed, heading closer to her.

"Get back!" One of the humans screamed.

"Please, there's no hospital here. Will you help him? He needs medicine… I-I don't know what to do!" The dog monster did not heed the warnings of the humans and kept on coming. Flashes of Rebekah's death paled her face. The threats were to be heeded.

"Ma'am, sto—" Frisk held out her arms, but quickly covered her ears with the fired shots. The dog monster fell to the ground on her knees with wide eyes and two holes in her skull. Frisk covered her mouth and stared as the monster fell forward but turned to dust before her body hit the ground. Frisk's mouth gaped open small whimpers escaping and gasps that quickly turned more frantic. Her throat closed, and she found it hard to breathe. Tears gathered up in her eyes. Monsters gathered down in main pathway. The pile of dust blending in with the snow, but they had no illusions on what had happened. They all heard the gunshots. Her knees shook, and she looked at the humans.

"What have you done?!" She screamed, grabbing onto one and shaking them.

"Back off Dreemurr." One said. The one that Frisk had a hold on pushing her away, Frisk grunting at the blunt pain in her chest.

"We told the creatures to not move passed the yellow pole."

Frisk looked back at the confused and terrified monsters. One gun wielding human came to another and whispered something in his ear. The fact that Frisk was unable to hear the conversation worried her even more. What was going to happen to all the monsters? Would they even survive?

"Miss Dreemurr, we're going to have to ask you to leave."

At the moment, Frisk had no objections. She was pulled rather forcefully by one of the humans who had touched her before she entered. The gate closed behind her with a loud and final _screech_ while Frisk was thrown into the snow. Frisk got on her hands and knees and lurched, ejecting all contents of her stomach into the white blanket of snow. Tears mixed with her vomit the more she expelled. She could taste the bile in her throat and feel it in her nose. The dog monster's confused and terrified face etched into her vision. An embarrassingly large puddle of vomit had pooled in front of Frisk. While her tears didn't stop, the vomit did. That face would be the source of her nightmares for what she was sure would be the rest of her life. Sans' death threat, the inability to find her parents, and the dog monster's murder were too much. She said her child was sick… all she was trying to do was to find some medicine for her child.

The hospital. It would be the answer. The child's name didn't matter. If she could get the kid in the hospital, then his mother's death wouldn't be in vain. While she had been kicked out, it didn't matter. Not everything that could be done to help had to be from the inside. If she was banned from coming back whether by the humans or from Sans' death promise, she could help from the outside. Cold snow gripped onto her hands when Frisk clenched her fists. Her life was in shambles. Her friends and family were gone. She was public enemy number one among monsters. It didn't matter… No. Determination is what kept her going regardless of what would happen to her. Swirling with new found anger for the ones behind this and the drive to set everything right, she willed her shaking and tired legs to stand up.

 _I will fight for you until my dying breath._

The grand hospital once stood as a beacon for monsters and humans. While it could save humans now, the dog monster's dying breath remained in her mind. All she wanted was for her child to be taken to the hospital. She walked in, ignoring her own sickness and nausea. Perhaps it wasn't a good idea to have some lunch at Jason's before going to see her friends. However, he had insisted, and she couldn't say no to him.

"Miss Frisk, what can I do for you?" The receptionist said, looking from the crossword that she had been doing.

 _Sans…_

"I… I need to speak to Dr. Stiles please."

"I think he's in surgery right now." The receptionist said. "Hold on, let me pull up his schedule." Frisk watched with bated breath while her eyes read whatever sort of schedule was showing on the computer screen. Whatever divine being was above them, she prayed that she'd be able to talk to him soon. "Yes ma'am, he's still in surgery. If you want to take a seat, I'll let you know when he's done."

"Thank you…" Frisk said, somewhat deflated.

Every second found like years. The condition of the young dog monster was unknown to her, but if it had his mother running towards some humans despite what they had been previously told, then it had to be bad. Every second that passed meant was a second more that her child was going without treatment. Her determination tried to falter… If the boy didn't survive, she'd feel more like a failure than she already felt like. Damon Stiles was one of her closest friends. They had gone to school together, although he was a couple grades higher than she was, they were still close. If anyone could help the little child, it would be him.

"Yes? Oh, alright. I'll let her know." A click sounded letting Frisk know that the conversation the woman was having was over. "Miss Frisk, Dr. Stiles is on his way."

"Thank you."

Frisk didn't have to wait long as Damon was rather punctual. She looked and saw the dusty blond-haired man come to her side. She stood up and looked at her friend and instantly began to cry again. Without asking, Damon hugged Frisk tight and rubbed her back. He was almost like a brother to her and knew what to say and when to say it. A rare trait, but Damon also knew when to not say anything.

"It's terrible… I went to the monster encampment in the slums and… oh my god Damon, it's terrible." She cried, holding onto the man. "It's worse than I thought it would be. A monster was shot… her child is sick, and she wanted me to get help and and and she was trying to come and tell me, and she was shot Damon. Just… Just _shot_!" Frisk exclaimed through her heaving sobs.

"Frisk…"

"Damon please… You're the best doctor Ebott has on humans _and_ monsters. Please, just… I don't know what else to do. I wouldn't get you involved if I didn't have to. I don't know what he needs, and I don't know how to diagnose the kid."

Frisk watched with bated breath as the wheels turned in Damon's head. He was a brilliant doctor; young, caring, gentle. The epitome of a true doctor. Even still, given his position and the fact that he was a human, there was still a chance that he would refuse. If he did, then little Sammy might not make it. Every second that Damon pondered the risks and the rewards, the little boy was closer and closer to becoming dust.

"You're right." Damon said with a sigh, putting his hands on his hips and giving a decisive nod. "Of course, you're right. It's times like this… that we need to band together where we can." He reached into his pocket and handed Frisk a small set of keys. "Go get into my car. I'll grab my bag and be out there in about five minutes. It'll be quicker to drive."

Frisk made no complaints and as soon as the metal from the keys touched her hand, she turned and bolted towards the parking garage. The concrete jungle that stored all the cars was relatively empty for this time of day. Granted, it was still packed to the brim, but she was able to see individual cars. She clicked the lock button and looked around running towards the car whose lights flickered in response. Running to the car, she hit the unlock button repeatedly, so it was prepared for her entry when she got to the car. She had no more sat down and put the keys in Damon's car and strapped herself in before Damon got in the car.

"Which way is the encampment at?"

"We're not going there right now." Frisk said as they tore out of the parking garage once he had cleared the cars around him.

"Isn't that where the kid's at?" Damon asked glancing at her from the corner of his eyes.

"Yes, but…" Frisk trailed off and covered her eyes like it was unbearable to look at the world. In its current state, it wasn't far off from the truth. "You need papers to get in. Full blown, legal, signed and stamped papers."

"That's—"

"Disgusting. I know."

 _Silence._

Damon sighed and stopped at the sign at the exit leading from the hospital onto Ebott's roads.  
"So, you got a plan?" He asked.

"Mayor Tills."

"Mayor Tills?" Damon gave a small chuckle, but it was in disbelief and not humor. "You're kidding right? From what I understand, his name and stamp was present on the order that put the monsters in this mess."

"So was mine." Frisk said and saw Damon's look of surprise. "Do you think I'd do that?"

"No of course—"

"Exactly." Frisk finally turned to look at him. Exhaling a huge sigh, she shook her head. "Look… I don't know what happened, but, both of our signatures and stamps were on that paper… Yet, I know that neither of us would sign that."

Damon turned on his blinker.

"To Mayor Tills then."

Frisk normally took the time to appreciate the architecture whenever she entered City Hall, but with Damon close behind, she burst through the glass doors and headed for the stairs at the back. Hopefully, Mayor Tills was still in. She hadn't thought to call ahead of time as she was so frazzled. If he wasn't, then she'd have to track him down and who knows what could've happened to Sammy in the time. He _had_ to be here. He just had to be. She passed Jessica Alans and Steven Vans' offices and took the stairs two at a time. Halfway up, she slipped and fell, scrapping her knees against the stairs' hard surface. With only a grunt more from agitation than the actual pain, she steadied herself and headed up the stairs. Nothing was going to stop her from seeing this through. Not some doors, not some stairs… not Sans' threat.

 _consider this your first and final warning, frisk dreemurr._

 _mark my words, human, if you attempt to lie to me again, the next hit won't miss._

She shook her head, ignoring the questioning look that Damon had given her. She wasn't in the mood to talk about it right now, or ever honestly. Talking about it would make it real and she just wanted to push it far back as she could in her head. Acknowledging it as real would mean that Sans had truly changed. That was something that she never wanted to admit or be faced with. Through the years, and even after their falling out, Sans had more or less stayed the same. Yet, the Sans that she had been met with before was _nothing_ like the Sans that she had known. The look of utter disbelief and… and… _betrayal_ in his eyes was clear; he really thought she did it. He believed that she would have done this just to harm them. All these injustices had to be set right and hopefully the man behind the door would be able to do such.

When Frisk entered Mayor Tills' office, she was on the brink of hyperventilating. Her lungs screamed and prayed for the oxygen she had deprived them of. Mayor Tills, who had been standing up when she entered, more than likely on his way out, now sat back down in his chair staring at her all the while. Frisk was bent over, hands on her knees. The pounding of running footsteps echoed down the hall, heading towards this office. Damon had entered just as Frisk stood up, satisfied to continue with the amount of oxygen she had regained.

"Damn Frisk, I'm not sure I've ever seen you run like that."

"Mayor… Mayor Tills…" Frisk began.

"Miss Dreemurr… Mr. Stiles… Is everything alright?"

Standing up to her full height, trying to regain some of the dignity that she had thrown out the window when she barged into his office doubling over from exhaustion and lack of oxygen. Even though she wanted to look stern and resolute, the crippling anxiety of the word "no" in this dire of a situation closed her throat leaving her with her mouth opening and closing like she was a goldfish.

"Miss Dreemurr?"

"M-Mayor Tills… I need your help." Frisk began once more, snapping out of it. "Damon and I need to get into the monster encampment at the slums."

Mayor Tills leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. From the way his face scrunched up, and his lips had upturned he was hoping that wasn't what she was going to ask.

"There's a little boy… he's sick." Frisk continued. "Please…"

"Miss Dreemurr. I'm sorry, but I can't."

All color left from Frisk's face. This didn't go how it was supposed to. This wasn't the plan. All her hopes had been riding on him, and to find that all this time had been a waste, now what was she supposed to do? How was she supposed to help? There was no back up plan.

"Why?" Damon asked, speaking up when he was aware of Frisk's shattered hope.

"My hands are tied, Mr. Stiles." Mayor Tills explained, leaning forward to place his elbows on the desk. "I've already gotten enough hell from… other sources for my recent actions."

"Regarding the exodus?"

"No. Regarding something I assisted Frisk here on earlier."

Frisk's legs gave out and she collapsed to her knees. The freshly skinned knees protested at the sudden change in posture, but Frisk ignored it. She stared at his desk, all emotion devoid from her face. Tears filled her eyes. placed her hands on the ground and her forehead pressed onto the carpet. This begging, this desperate plea was the last thing that she could think of. If this didn't work, she had failed. Sans was right, she was nothing more than a human. Just like all the others. It was stupid to think that she was any different.

"Please…" She whispered, her voice cracking. "He's just a child. Don't let him die."

She didn't dare look up to see the expression on his face. The current position was clear; he held all the cards. Mayor Tills _wanted_ to help, she knew that. But Frisk was asking him to do something that could get him in serious trouble considering how he was being monitored for the stunt he had pulled earlier to get Sans and the rest of her friends released from jail. Whoever had found out and reported Tills had been in the building that night. If Frisk hazarded a guess, she could assume that it was the same person who had been in the security office with her. If it was true, and she wasn't barking up the wrong tree—

"You're right, Miss Dreemurr… You have your papers." Mayor Tills smiled at her when they met eye contact. "Now get up… begging isn't like you."

Frisk looked up and watched Mayor Tills furiously type on his computer with a speed that had not been previously known to her. Scrambling awkwardly, Frisk managed to stand up with Damon's help to prevent her weak legs from giving out again. With all her adrenaline ebbing out of her body, the pain crept up on her from her knees, a growing headache, the burn from her throat when she had vomited; everything.

"Here you are." Tills said, handing Frisk the papers with a smile that she was unable to decipher. "Good luck."

"Thank you, Sir. Thank you _so_ much."  
Frisk nodded at Damon and smiled, heading back towards his car.

Frisk and Damon had exited the car and stood in front of the large, now almost completed fence and gate. The encampment was just as cold and hostile looking as it had been when she was there previously. With how shaken she had been, Frisk had hoped that her mind had conjured the encampment to be less menacing than she had seen it. Of course, she was wrong. They were holding her friends and her parents captive. Sick children weren't allowed to leave. There was no peace here. No hope. It was up to everyone on the outside to help, and those that desired to help were either too afraid to or had too little say in matters. Good people were a minority these days, especially with the Exodus.

"This… This is terrible." Damon muttered under his breath.

Humans had been responsible for many things through the years. Pain, war, murder, etc., but to think that they could still be this… this _barbaric_ after so many years of growing and surviving, and with how much civilization had been built… it was a wake-up call. She had liked to think that everyone, even though they all argued at one time or another, still had some decency and common understanding of morale to _know_ this was wrong. Unfortunately, Frisk had to be surprised again.

"C'mon. Let's get inside."

The entry, for whatever reason, went more smoothly this time. With how bundled up the guards were, it could very well be that the guards that were there this morning were not the same ones that she was face-to-face with now. Then again, Damon was standing at a whopping 6' 4", so maybe they just decided to not cross the man. Either way, she was thankful. All they needed to do was hand the papers to them and they were granted entry. Like a normal entry request was supposed to go; without being touched or felt up.

Inside was just as terrifying and dismal as she remembered. A small imprint from where Sammy's mother had collapsed remained in the snow. Every time her eyes trailed to it as they passed, her stomach flipped. If she had've had something to eat before she went and retrieved Damon and the papers, she was sure she would've vomited again, right there. The look of horror and sadness on the mother's face was engrained into her mind. Tonight when she slept, she knew she'd see the look in her nightmares.

Frisk turned to Damon, about to speak when she saw him looking around at the many shivering monsters. Some were pulling from trees while others were taking great care in taking what looked like small berries. This was what their friends and some fellow co-workers of many different businesses had been reduced to. All by their kind. If… no, _when_ they figured out how to get out of all this, she wouldn't be surprised or blame them, if monsters harbored hatred for the humans.

"It's this way…" She said, pulling on his sleeve to drag him away from the horrific sight. Halfway to the house, she remembered that Sammy was being kept in Sans and Papyrus' house. Surely, Sans wouldn't do anything that would harm Frisk right in front of everyone; especially Papyrus. Right? Even if something did happen to her, as long as Sammy was alright and taken care of, then it would be okay. But, when they entered the home Sans was nowhere to be found.

The flames inside crackled and one bird monster was tending to the fire that they were all huddled around, trying to stay warm and comfortable. It was still cold inside, but since Frisk noticed this was one of the more put together homes, it was able to shield them from a majority of the harsh elements they no doubt encountered.

"FRISK!" Papyrus exclaimed, his smile still wide despite the dire situation. "OH, AND TALL DOCTOR HUMAN. HELLO!"

"Papyrus, this is my friend Damon Stiles. He's here to look at Sammy."

"OH! THE SICK BOY. YES, OF COURSE! THAT IS VERY KIND OF HIM!"

Frisk motioned to the bed where the little boy was laying. Damon made his way, moving around the monsters of various types to reach the unconscious boy.

"Papyrus… Where's Sans?"

"HE SAID HE HAD SOMETHING TO TAKE CARE OF, BUT HE LEFT ME IN CHARGE OF THE HOUSE! I'M THE GREAT PAPYRUS AFTER ALL."

Frisk smiled,  
"That's right. Don't forget it."

"WHY WOULD I FORGET FRISK? I HAVE A VERY GOOD MEMORY." Papyrus explained and clasped his gloved hands together. "OH, COULD I GET YOU SOMETHING TO DRINK? I HAVE… SNOW. BUT ONCE IT MELTS, IT'S WATER. OR WHAT ABOUT SOMETHING TO EAT? I HAVE… SMALL RED BERRIES."

"No thanks Paps… I already ate." Frisk smiled. "Thank you though."

"OF COURSE! I AM MASTER HOST PAPYRUS TOO. NYEH HEH HEH!"

Frisk couldn't help but smile. Papyrus' emotions were contagious. Even though things were absolutely horrific, he still managed a smile and to put everyone at ease around him. If he wasn't there, chances were that everyone would be a lot more frenzied and terrified. It probably also helped that their home had been opened to many monsters and their families. Speaking of… Frisk looked in Damon's direction. He had opened his box and was checking Sammy's vital signs. He bundled the kid up and fumbled around and pulled out an orange rectangle. He bent it in half and put it on Sammy's head. She had seen those compresses before. Hot or cold, they contained a small pouch on the inside, which when broken, would release the desired element into the rest of the compress.

"He's got a really high fever." Damon said and sighed. "202 degrees."

For a human, that would be dead. Shriveled up and burned alive like the fires of Hell. However, for monsters, especially ones like Sammy had a higher body temperature to begin with. 202 was on the equivalent of 105 or 106 for humans.

"Hopefully with the compress," Damon took out more of the rectangles and distributed them among the waiting monsters. "and the blankets, it'll bring it down. I… I can't diagnose him fully. I don't have all my equipment."

"M-Mommy…?" Sammy's eyes opened, and he stared up at the ceiling. "Mommy?! Where are you?" Frisk saw Sammy blink his eyes repeatedly. A white film glazed over the surface of the boy's eyes. He was blind. Whether it was from an accident or from his sickness, Frisk was unsure. She moved to the little boy's side and grabbed his paw.

"It's okay, Sammy… Mommy's here." Frisk said, watching a relieved look wash over the boy's face. She felt a burning sensation in her nose and her eyes.

"Mommy…" He smiled, and Frisk pet his head and between the little boy's floppy dog ears. He closed his eyes and relaxed further into the bed. "You're the best…"

Frisk almost choked on her sobs but remained to keep her breathing level. The boy was already blind and delusional in his sickness. He didn't seem to realize that Frisk had no fur on her hand or that her voice wasn't like his mother's. She didn't want to worry him even more. If she told him, she wasn't sure what it would do to him or how he would respond.

"Just get some rest, Sammy."

"Mommy… thank you for taking care of me."

"Of course, you—"

"All the time. Just forever…" Sammy said. "You're the best Mommy ever."

Frisk continued to pet the little boy's head.  
"Now get some sleep."

"I love you, Mommy." Sammy said and tried to grip onto her hand, but he was too weak. She closed her eyes and knelt up to kiss his forehead, trying to bring the little boy the motherly comfort that he craved. She closed her eyes and spoke,

"I love you too, Sammy."

Frisk's tears finally fell when the boy's paw became limp in her grip. Her tears fell harder when she felt the hand disappear, leaving her with a dusty white residue on her fingers. She opened her eyes and leaned back on her heels as Sammy's face disappeared leaving only a pile of dust behind and the warm compress, tears continuing to stream down her face.


	17. Grillby's

_Here we are with another chapter. I tried something different this time and I really hope that you like it. I'm pretty pleased with how it came out._

* * *

 _Grillby's Bar and Grill._ The flame elemental stood in front of the store front displaying his moniker. In times of distress, worry, or happiness the restaurant and bar would be a beacon. A warm place where he welcomed all, despite of species or reputation. Inside, despite it having a bar, things were relatively peaceful. Humans and monsters had been respected and treated equally among these four walls by both staff and fellow patrons. Things were not so simple anymore unfortunately, Annabelle's tightening on his dirtied vest and the painfully tight shackles around his wrists attesting to that. The very place that he had put his heart and soul was now a prison outside of the prison containing all his friends.

"Look Ignis, you may not be fucking cold, but some of us aren't so lucky." One human murmured from behind him, shoving him in the shoulder. The unexpected jolt almost forced Annabelle out of his arms. His grip tightened in just enough time to prevent the small kitten from tumbling to the snow below. While the fall may not have killed her or harmed her in any way, letting her out of his arms felt like it would be a failure; to her, to her father's memory, and to his promise to care for her. "Get in."

Inside, the warm bar for where he had found comfort and peace in the past years now felt foreign and wrong. The chairs and booths were empty of his usual patrons and were instead occupied by humans of various sizes, shapes, and colors. While he prided himself in never generalizing humans, these could all be encompassed into one word; trash. Literal human trash littering his once clean and pristine establishment. Each human had a smug grin on their faces, a look of triumph, and a posture of dominance. These humans were in control, and they knew it. Instinctively, Grillby tightened his grip onto the little girl, guiding her face down to his chest. Annabelle had seen enough as it was, if he could somehow preserve some of her innocence, he'd do it.

Grillby stumbled forward from another shove pounded between his shoulder blades. From beneath his glasses, he saw Annabelle look up at him tears in her wide eyes. He pretended not to acknowledge her worry and kept his head held high while he was guided further into the human infested bar. Bugs. Trash. He'd never hated so many humans at once in his whole, long _long_ life. What felt like forever ago, when Grillby stood behind the counter _he_ was in control of the room. An observer that everything was taken care of and was peaceful save the times a fight broke out for ridiculous reasons among the patrons and he was forced to catch a glass in mid-air or dodge silverware. Now, he felt like an animal in the zoo being ogled at for these humans' pleasure.

"Hold ya wrists out. Both o' ya." Grillby looked at this human, a clearly uneducated one. One of—if he recalled correctly—Jacob Rice's lackeys. Slowly, he sat Annabelle on the bar, but kept her close making it painfully aware that he would protect the tiny kitten if he tried to make a move to harm her. He took a small metal apparatus from inside his pocket; almost like a key but different and latched it to the cuffs that unlocked. As soon as the painful, glowing metal left her wrists, Annabelle scampered from the bar and back into Grillby's welcoming arms. "Put the mangy cat down. Ya can't cook wit' 'er in ya arms, ya freak."

As much as he hated to admit it, the human was right. He couldn't cook with Annabelle in his arms. Even if he did, there was a chance that a couple of her hairs would end up in their meals and… he dreaded to think of what would happen to him, or worse _her_ if something like that happened. Glaring at the human all the while, he placed Annabelle on the bar pointedly.

"On ta floor smart ass, I don't want cat ass on my bar."

 _His bar?_

Swallowing the rebuttal he had prepared, Grillby picked Annabelle up and lowered her to the floor. All the while very aware of her small whispered pleas of _"no"._ When her tiny pawed feet hit the floor, he looked down at her and pet the spot between her ears. He turned and looked at the very pleased human surrounded by other smiles of a similar, slimy fashion. He hated being at someone's beck and call unwillingly. Perfectly happy to feel Annabelle's grip on his pants leg, to know she was still close, he turned his attention to the humans that had swarmed his bar like the insects that they were. He had to physically force his face to remain neutral when staring into the eyes of those that had reduced his once prideful and jovial bar into a cesspool.

"What can I get you… Sir?" Grillby asked, choking out the word 'Sir'.

"'bout fucking time."

Grillby took out his trusty pad of paper from his compartment under his bar and wrote down the orders the humans had given him. The first rush of these slimy humans ran him through three pages front and back. Off-handedly, he wondered if he'd be held liable if the humans ended up dying in here from overeating. It wasn't his bar anymore, just the name on the front. Then again, due to the fact of him being a monster, they may just lock him up based on that evidence. That would leave Annabelle all alone again. Yes, she'd have all the others. She'd have his friends, but… she wouldn't have him anymore. Now, he was the closest thing to a family member that she had.

"Let me inform you, Ignis." Rice began. "If I find my food tasting even the _tiniest_ bit off, you'll be paying for it. Hear me?"

"Clearly." Grillby responded before flipped his notebook back to the first page and adjusted his glasses.

 _Poisoning them isn't an option then…_

Grillby looked down as he headed into the kitchen and saw that Annabelle had latched herself to his leg, standing on his foot. A small smile came to his face. When he disappeared behind the kitchen door, he knelt in front of her and pet her head. The small gesture seemed to calm her, her shoulders relaxed, and her whiskers twitched.

"We'll be okay. I promise." Grillby tilted her head up when it fell. Things did look dismal, he'd have to agree with her there. "Keep your head up, Annabelle. No matter what. Be strong." The little girl finally smiled and nodded.

"Good." Grillby said and stood up, focusing on his task at hand. Cook the food. If he took too long, he didn't want to think of what could go wrong.

Out of the corner of his eyes, over the frame of his glasses he saw Annabelle who had taken shelter under the sink playing with her doll. Her attention was solely focused on whatever game she was playing. He was unable to tell if it was forced or if she was that intent on whatever imaginary game she had conjured up. Either way, he was thankful she was somewhere that was still close, but that wouldn't cause a commotion. Even though the sign on the door to the kitchen said _Employees Only_ , the humans wouldn't hesitate to break that rule if it benefitted them in any way. The sizzling of burgers on the grill and the grease in the fry bins usually would set his mind at ease as he only needed to focus on one thing and could block out anything else. This time though, no dice. He kept thinking of all the wrong things that could happen in the timespan he was here; however long that may be, to him or Annabelle. Sighing, Grillby flipped one of the burgers and shook his head. No, he had to focus on the positives. They were both here; together. Annabelle was playing with her doll and she wasn't shivering. The heating in here was still magnificent, of course it wasn't for _their_ benefit. Humans were more susceptible to the elements, so he had no illusions that it would be to keep them comfortable. They only cared about themselves. Still, it felt _wrong_ in a way that he was able to enjoy the heat. His friends were back at home shivering after all.

" _Daddy? Wake up!"_

The soul shattering sobs and screams that had torn themselves from Annabelle had haunted him the previous night, preventing him from sleeping too soundly. Now they were back with a newfound fury. He wondered if her father had froze in his sleep or if he was forced to live through every moment of his body's decline. With no heat in the slums other than the makeshift fires he had prepared the previous night, had he thought bitterly of them for not being able to take him in? What was her father's last thought? Was it thinking of Annabelle? Hating him? Thanking him? Would he be pleased to know that his daughter was now in the comfort of a rather visually striking bar (if he did say so himself)? While Grillby wasn't sure how to care for children, being rather awkward around them, caring for Annabelle was quickly becoming easier for him. Perhaps the fact that he was able to relate to her in a small manner helped as he had lost his parents when he was quite young also.

Grillby turned and reached to grab plates. He lined them all up meticulously, making sure that each dish would receive the same amount of uncaring hatred, but seemingly tedious care. He looked at the page containing all the orders the slime balls had ordered and counted each one off as the sizzling food was placed on the ceramic tan inlaid plates. Involuntarily, he felt the presence of excess saliva mounding on his tongue at the food's scent. It had been almost two full days since he had eaten anything. It took longer for monsters to have any adverse effects from lack of food, but they declined fast once it started. He swallowed the growing desire for food and tried to remain neutral. Any sign of weakness and the humans would devour it just as quickly as they would this food.

The instant he turned to deliver the first wave of food, a loud grumble resounded in the kitchen. He looked down half expecting his stomach to apologize, but in realizing it wasn't his, he turned and saw Annabelle holding her own stomach. Meeting gazes for half a second, Annabelle quickly looked down at the doll and played with a small strand of thread that was coming loose. Her large eyes brimming with tears of either embarrassment or sadness. Knowing in his heart of hearts that he was treading on dangerous ground, especially since they had already seen that some of the food was done, he tried to stealthily take a smaller plate and sneak a few fries from each plate and place them on the smaller plate. If he didn't do this quickly and quietly while managing to keep the appearance of a full and complete dish for the humans, they might not leave complete.

Balancing four plates; one in each hand and another in the bend of his arms, he left the kitchen and placed the steaming food in front of the greedy humans that looked like the _last_ thing they needed was another burger. Trying to distance himself from the situation, he focused on the _thwap_ the kitchen door was making as it swung back and forth meeting the frame every time.

"Here you are… Sirs, the—"

Grillby grunted, a pain radiating on his cheek and his temple, very close to his eye. He was flung from the humans and barely managed to catch himself on the bar where his glasses fell. It took him a few moments to recover from the shock. A hit. No, a punch. From the door, he heard a soft gasp from the direction.

 _Annabelle..._

"The hell took you so fucking long, Ignis?" Rice asked, absentmindedly shaking away the pain punching the flame monster had caused him.

Shuddering a breath, Grillby stood and took his glasses from the bar. He'd really have to be careful now. If his glasses broke, he'd be out of luck. No place would give him—a monster—some glasses even if he did have money.

"I…apologize." Grillby murmured, trying to regain some dignity, trying to do what he had told Annabelle to do.

 _Keep your head high. No matter what. Be strong._

"'I apologize' what?" Rice asked, gesturing for Grillby to continue.

"…" Grillby clenched his fists at his side. "I apologize, _Sir._ "

"That's what I thought." Rice popped a fry into his mouth and Grillby hoped that it ended up going down the wrong pipe and choking him and causing severe damage to the man's vocal chords. "I'll let you off with that warning since I'm such a caring man."

"I been hearin' that ya got some o' that good alcohol."

Grillby adjusted his glasses, flinching slightly when the frame brushed up against the tender spot that Rice's punch had caused.

"The man's talking to you." Rice glared.

"Yes, Sir. I heard him. I was simply trying to deduce which bottle he was alluding to." Grillby folded his hands behind him, trying to portray the persona of the submissive and weak barkeep. The throbbing against his head made him _very_ aware of his current position; as if he'd forget. Rice scoffed and popped another fry into his mouth. The other humans followed suit, eagerly digging into their food. How he wished that he had been somehow able to sneak poison into their food. On the opposite side of the coin, Annabelle would've ended up hearing their strangled cries of death, so perhaps it was better he didn't. After all, the girl had seen enough in the passed day than a little girl, or anyone, should have to.

The uneducated human tapped his chin in thought, his beady green eyes looking at each bottle with an intensity that was… quite disturbing. If he looked at _bottles_ of alcohol this way, he felt sorry for whatever poor woman managed to catch his gaze. Finally, the beady-eyed human with the buck teeth and the education equivalent to a baby in the womb, and even then, that baby may have more intelligence, pointed to a bottle on the top shelf. Grillby managed to resist shaking his head. Of course, that human would want something from the top shelf. He adjusted his glasses and followed the man's finger to the translucent green bottle which was among three other bottles in a locked case at the top shelf. The corner of his lips twitched upwards.

 _Highly uneducated._

"Wassat?"

Grillby reached up and unlocked the small case he personally called the "Death Case". Many a time, monsters and humans alike had tried the best of the best to prove something to everyone and themselves and ended up passed out, in a coma, or violently vomiting in his bathroom from the liquids contained in this case. He adjusted his glasses and smiled which in turn caused the human to smile. However, the reasons were completely different.

"A man of fine taste." Grillby complimented. "This is one of my finer selections in this humble establishment."

"Gimme it."

"Of course, Sir." Grillby said, not missing the confused look that Rice was giving him at his quick and drastic change in mood.

"Ignis, give me that bottle." Rice said and pointed to the milky bottle at the far left.

 _Perhaps lack of education is contagious._

"Yes. Of course." Grillby grabbed both bottles and sat them on a table behind the counter. "You have a good eye. This is very popular among monsters." Seeing the hesitation and worry cross his face, Grillby shook his head. "This has the same effects on humans and monsters equally." This seemed to satisfy Rice as he gestured for Grillby to pour him a shot.

One by one, each of the men demanded drinks of varying types. Some straight, some on the rocks, some cocktails, which was strange for a stereotypical human man wearing a suit and enjoyed in hurting people. Either way, he was able to return to the kitchen to retrieve more glasses. He saw Annabelle sitting under the sink. When he returned, she scampered from under the sink and held onto his legs.

"Mr. Grillby are you okay?" Annabelle asked. "I saw that mean man hurt you…" Annabelle was a smart child as she knew immediately to whisper the last part. He had feared that she saw, but, was hoping she hadn't.

"I'm fine. I promise." Grillby said and turned his attention to the plate of fries comprised of the ones he had taken from the humans. With careful attention, he lowered the plate to her making sure to avoid the window that lead to the rest of the establishment, so the humans wouldn't catch on to his petty theft. His smile was met with a large growl from her stomach. "Now eat."

"But what about you, Mr. Grillby?" Her voice was practically drowned out by her stomach begging her to consume the food that was before her.

"I'm not that hungry." _Liar._ "Go on, eat."

Annabelle smiled and scampered back under the sink and took a bite of the fries. The first genuine, truly fearless, and happy smile spread across her face. It occurred to Grillby that he'd only be able to feed her like this when they were here and only if he managed to sneak some from the humans' plates to a separate one. It wasn't a way for a child to live; under a sink practically living off scraps. To him though, the threat of being punched or worse was worth it if the reward meant a shoulder relaxed, smiling kitten. He looked at her and knelt after glancing to see that the humans were talking among themselves. He pointed to a small table at the corner.

"There's ketchup, mustard, salt, and pepper over there. Take what you need."

"Thank you, Mr. Grillby…" Annabelle said with a bright smile.

Grillby felt something in his chest, almost like a cold fire, but it still burned brightly and fiercely. He stood up and went to the cabinet, grabbing the finest glasses he had. Usually, these were reserved for a birthday or a holiday. In order for this to all work perfectly and avoid further punches, he'd have to cater to these humans' egos just as much as their hunger. If they ordered more, while he wouldn't be able to make money… he'd be able to give Annabelle more food. If he could just figure out how to bring some home. For her. For his friends. There were so many monsters that were hungry at home… It would definitely be noticeable if he took enough to where he'd be able to feed everyone. He'd have to choose who'd get some food… he wasn't sure he could deal with that big of a responsibility. He'd seen what that kind of responsibility could result in with Sans' horrified and guilty face along with Annabelle's screams and sobs. Pushing those memories back, he grabbed onto the glasses and headed back to the front.

"Here you are." Grillby sat the glasses down on the bar, each in front of every human that was sitting there. Grunting from pain when he was smacked again for 'taking too long'. He heard a whimper from the kitchen. This hit was thankfully less forceful than the other and only made his glasses askew instead of flinging him across the bar and his glasses almost breaking in the process, but he still could taste metallic blood. "I apologize for keeping you waiting." Setting his glasses right, he heard Rice snort a laugh.

Grillby's hands clenched the bottle as he poured (almost enough to break the bottles) each person's desired drink into an overly decorated glass. Each person that wanted theirs straight was handed first, then on the rocks, finally those that took more work—the cocktails—were given. Save Rice who's on the rocks was made before everyone else's. The frame of his glasses wouldn't be able to take much more abuse if he kept crossing him in unknown ways. It was learning how to please this overly inflated human, but… the learning curve was steep and high.

"Please enjoy." Grillby said once he delivered the last drink. He placed a hand over his chest and bowed slightly, almost like a butler. Right now, he felt like an abused plaything for a human, but if he kept getting hit and beat around, he wouldn't be able to fully and properly take care of Annabelle the way she needed to be. That could potentially put her in major trouble if the humans ended up thinking of using her to get him to obey. Which he wouldn't put it passed them. Annabelle was a child, but they wouldn't hesitate to use her for their own personal, perverted, and twisted ways.

"Don't tell me what to do." One of Rice's lackeys muttered, taking a bite out of his burger. Rather funny that they were so high and mighty while he was chowing down on one of Grillby's burgers that he could've easily poisoned despite Rice's warning.

"I wouldn't dream of it." Grillby murmured, his attention turning to Rice who tapped his glass twice on the bar wordlessly signaling that he needed another refill. Pressing his glasses further up on his face, he took the bottle and poured it in until a large hand was held up. Involuntarily, Grillby found himself flinching earning a deep, pleased laugh. His wellbeing wasn't his primary concern because of his own desires, but for her. For that tiny tabby kitten savoring every fry that he had stolen in the kitchen. That burn in his chest was fueling him and guiding him through his embarrassment of flinching from this human. He stopped pouring and capped the bottle once more. Another glass tapping. Another. Another. "I suggest slowing down."

"Are ya sayin' 'at I can't handle it?"

 _Yes._

"Of course not, Sir." Grillby dipped his head in faux respect. It seemed to placate the idiot human who slammed his glass on the bar so hard that it shattered sending glass shards every which way on the once clean bar. While the human was rather… simple, it seemed he had some strength. He filed that information away for later.

"Lookit what ya made me do!"

"I didn't—"

 _Slap!_

"What wassat?" Grillby grunted, adjusting his glasses on his nose again. "Clean it up."

"… Yes sir."

Retreating to the back to grab his cleaning supplies, he caught a glimpse of Annabelle, who had stopped munching on her fries to look at him. Her wide eyes were met with a smile. The pain in Grillby's neck and on his face was nothing when he looked at her. A child was truly an amazing and confusing thing. He nodded at her. The gesture earned a smile in return and she returned to eating her plate of fries, savoring each bite. Truth be told, Grillby wasn't sure when she'd be able to eat next. Yes, he would be brought here quite often if what Jacob Rice had to say was true. That being said, it wasn't a guarantee that he'd be able to bring Annabelle every time. This time, yes, but with how much he had pissed off the humans with seemingly normal gestures and statements, they could very well punish him—in addition to the physical punishment he was receiving—by making him unable to bring Annabelle with him anymore. Back home, there wouldn't be enough to feed her, if they had found food at all. He dreaded to think what he would return to.

Grillby opened the metal cabinet and looked at his reflection in the mirror lining the back, tilting his head in all directions. Due to his elemental form, any bruises would be able to be covered up, but he could still feel them coming on. The humans had better be thankful that all magic had been prohibited by an unknown severity of punishment. If the rule hadn't been set, they would've ended up in the hospital with burns that would've been a new discovery for laying their hands on him or denting his bar with the bottom of their glasses with their repeated slamming. He retrieved two bags, a rag, dustpan, and a cleaning chemical.

The humans were laughing at whatever crude joke had just been told. Paying them as little mind as possible, Grillby cleaned up the mess that the human had made. He always hated cleaning up glass. The amount and length of the shards varied so much that he could easily end up missing one that would end up stuck in some varying part of his arm weeks later while wiping down the bar. Fully attentive to prevent another incident as such reoccurring, he had almost flared his magic when a human got close. He sure wasn't ready to get hit again. The thought of how his body was going to ache the next day was enough to make him more wary of his actions and choose his words carefully. Yet, no strike came. Turning his attention back to the plethora of humans, Grillby clenched his jaw. Smoke billowed out from the stupid human's nostrils from the freshly lit cigar that had been ignited on his person. Being a fire elemental had its perks but being used as a lighter without his permission wasn't one of them.

"Got sommin ta say?"

"No sir."

"'hat's what I thought."

"Ignis, another round of food." Rice ordered.

"Right away." Grillby's palm had just met the bar when a voice stopped him. "My warning still stands."

"Of course."

"Take your time."

Grillby cooked at a rate that almost rivaled Sans' teleporting speed. He wasn't fooled by Rice's extension of time; he wasn't that kind. The words were, if anything, a warning that he had better make it snappier than it had been before. Every time an order was completed, he'd sneak a few pieces of beef that had fallen from the juicy burgers into a pile and some fries before taking the finished plate to the waiting human at the bar. Obviously, he enjoyed cooking, but Grillby had never thought that he could end up hating what he had at once lived for. Between every order, he'd pour more shots for the demanding, greedy humans. When he placed the last plate down, he quickly gathered up the finished dishes from the first round and went and put them into the three-compartment sink above Annabelle, making sure to place them in carefully. The clanking of plates and glasses wasn't pleasant sounding from his height. Annabelle mind end up going deaf from the sound if he just tossed it in there (not to mention there'd be more glass to clean up later). He turned back to the plate of fries and a makeshift burger on Annabelle's plate and handed it back to her.

"Sorry I couldn't make you a larger burger, Annabelle."

"Thank you, Mr. Grillby." Annabelle's smile was wide and warm. "Want some?"

"No thank you. I appreciate it, but I'm still not hungry. Eat it all up."

He only looked away once she had started to eat.

 _One day I'll make you a_ real _burger, Annabelle._

"Ah!" Grillby's attention snapped to where Rice's yell had come from. He had just pushed through the doors when he saw a human throw up onto the floor, blowing chunks onto his beautiful floor. He scrunched up his nose. Of course he was going to end up having to clean up after him. "What the fuck! You got it on my shoe you fucking idiot!" The sick human was flung with a kick from the puked on shoe to the floor beneath him, almost landing in the chunky pile he had created. Rice took his shoe and wiped it onto the shirt. "Dumbass…" The Death Case alcohol was certainly doing its job. A quick glance around revealed many humans were either green in the face and the ones who weren't stupid enough to try the locked up alcohol were sitting with hunched shoulders, relaxation practically oozing from their pores all inhibitions gone.

 _It's the simple things in life…_

One tipsy human moved from his stool to try and move the one on the floor's side. Dead weight was rather heavy and would be a challenge for a sober human. While tipsy, this one wasn't stupid enough to attempt it and pushed his shoulder, at least trying to move him onto his side.

"Leave him." Rice ordered. "Hopefully the fucker will do us all a favor and end himself right here." The amount of times occurrences like this would've happened must've been alarmingly high as none of the lackeys surrounding the fat ass looked shaken, confused, or ready to defy him in the slightest. Actually, each of them seemed to be saying their internal farewells to the human for the very likely chance he would drown in his own chunks. "Ignis, clean this up." Rice snapped a couple times and pointed to the pile. "But leave the dumbass…"

Usually if a customer was passed out, he would see to the person getting a ride or making sure he was all taken care of and got everything out of his system. Shockingly, he ended up agreeing with Rice. This human laying on the floor _should_ do everyone a favor and just end it. While he hadn't done anything to Grillby personally, he was terrible by association. While that was rather unfair in most circumstances, it seemed rather just in this one.

In the midst of cleaning up his passed out customer's vomit, a large, stocky human slammed into the bar with a fury so vast, Grillby checked to make sure that the doors were still attached to the hinges and able to close. Not bothering to greet anyone or even _look_ at anyone else, he crossed the distance to where Rice was sitting lazily in his stool, nursing a glass of alcohol with its melting ice. Grillby couldn't help but notice that the humans that had acted so important when it was just them and Rice were now hunching in their chairs, pointedly looking at everything and anything that wasn't in the exchange that was about to take place. Even Grillby moved to the side, letting the large human step over the mess.

"To what do I owe the pleasure, Mr. Waber?"

"You know what I'm here for." The man called 'Waber' said, fists clenching at his sides.

Rice exhaled and rolled his eyes, clearly bored with the turn of events and the extent of the conversation. Grillby absent-mindedly cleaned the mess while trying his hardest to not make it obvious that he was listening in. He must've not been very convincing… It felt like needles were stinging into his back. The squeak of the barstool alerted him to movement and he saw Rice standing up with his hands in his pockets.

"Let's continue this conversation outside, shall we Waber?"

The two men's steps were harsh enough to conjour an air of terror and animosity around them. When the two disappeared outside, the previously cowering men went back to their drinks and food neither concerned with the situation or the mess that was on the floor. Grillby had never been so glad to have a heightened hearing than humans.

"Very clear rules were outlined." Rice said, clicking his tongue.

"And this is the punishment?"

"Disobedience begets punishment. It doesn't matter what you are; human or monster."

The silence was almost defeaning and Grillby had wondered if they had went further out of even his earshot or if the conversation had ended because they somehow realized that he was listening.  
"Do you plan on killing him?"

"Since when have you cared about the death of a few insects?"

"Answer me."

"No. However, he'll wish he was dead." A small laugh came from Rice making shivers run up Grillby's spine. "Examples have to be made of."

"Is that what this is?" Waber asked. "An example."

"Of course. I don't do anything without reason, Waber. I'm a very busy man." Rice exhaled what was most likely from the cold. "Sans Snowdin is a rather popular monster. What better way to get them to learn their place than to make an example out of one of them?"

Grillby's blood turned to ice and he almost dropped his mop. Sans? Sans Snowdin? His eyes darted back and forth along the planks of wood, trying to find an answer. He had to get a hold of someone. Someone that could help, but… who? Frisk? No matter how much trouble Sans was in, he wouldn't want Frisk's help. That didn't matter though, he could be mad at Grillby all he wanted, at least he'd be alive. But… that wouldn't work. He wasn't even sure if he'd be able to get a hold of her. The phone was right in plain view of the humans and they wouldn't allow him to call out.

"The logic is sound, I have to admit." Waber said, his voice sounding different. Almost interested.

"You don't usually interject yourself in my affairs Waber. Why don't you tell me what this is about, hm?"

"Fine. I want custody of Sans Snowdin."

"Ha!" Jacob laughed. "And why would I do that? Snowdin is an extremely influential. Why would I give him away?"

"You have numbers, Rice. Think about it." Waber said. "Snowdin isn't the only one that can influence the masses."

"Hmm… You make a point." Rice said. "Alright. You have a deal, on two conditions."

"Which are?"

"He remains in the encampment with the rest of his kind." Rice said. "If he leaves, the others will start thinking that they've got a way out. Do as I do with Ignis here. Use him and throw him back."

"Agreed." Waber said. "What else?"

"He remains in the facility and will undergo my… rehabilitation program." Rice chuckled.

"Agreed."

"I'll have my assistant draw up the paperwork later and have it delivered to you."

Grillby stopped listening, overwhelmed at the conversation between the two. What had he just heard? Sans? His friend… were they just bargaining chips? And… a rehabilitation program? Where? How long? What on earth had Sans done to end up there? Does Papyrus know? Does _anyone_ know?

 _Sans… What are they doing to you, my friend?_


End file.
